THE PILGRIMS; 



OR, 



UNCLE JOSEPH AND ROLLIN 

THROUGH THE ORIENT 



P. W. RAIDABAUGH 



-A-UTHOIR, OF "ZFIO-HTinSTG- GKE-A.2STTS." 



MAY I y- 1887 j 



CLEVELAND, O. 
Publishing House of the Evangelical Association, 
Lauer <& Yost, Agents. 

1887. 



Entered, according to act of Congress, in the year 1887, by 

LAUER & YOST, 

in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



PREFACE. 



The author has no apology to make for offering 
this volume for the Sunday-school and home library. 
It has been written in a style which he hopes will in- 
terest the young in the geography of the Bible, as well 
as the history of Bible lands, and make the study of 
those, otherwise dull subjects, a pleasure and profit- 
able. 

If the reading of these pages will help any boy or 
girl to a better understanding of the Word of God, 
the writer will feel that he is well paid for the many 
hours of toil spent upon their preparation. 

P. W. R. 

Cleveland, O., April, 1887. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



PAGE. 

Chapter 1 9 

Uncle Joseph's health — The Suggestion — Rollins proposition — 
Ocean voyage — Arrival in Paris — History of Paris — Siege of 
Paris — The Commune — River Seine — Xotre Dame — They 
attend Church services — Sabbath desecration — At Lyons — Mar- 
seilles — Embark for Candia — The great fish — In the port of 
Alexandria. 

Chapter II 27 

Hail to the land of Egypt — Caliph Omar — Pompey — Mausoleum of 
Alexander — Saracenic Conquest — Pillar of Pompey — Obe- 
lisks — Rossetta — Camels — Cleopatra's Needle — A Funeral — 
Arab School — The Nile — Buloe — Cairo — Joseph's Well — 
Baths of Cairo — Street pedlars. 

Chapter III. .» 43 

Climate of Egypt — The Mule — Donkey Boys — Watermelons — 
Crossing of the Nile — Cool Shade — Egyptian Children — The 
Cradle — Cats — Girl names — Miss Whateley's School — A beautiful 
incident — Conversation — Manners and Customs. 

Chapter IV 62 

Mission Work — A Remarkable Conversion — Conquest of India — 
Horse Sale — Story Telling — Yatency — The Seven Beans — The 
Sultan's Treasures — The Ottoman Empire — Servian Prince — The 
Vizier. 

Chapter V , 75 

Roida — The Nilometer — Place where Vases were found — The 
Nile— The Khalij Canal — Pyramids — Their Magnitude — Their 
Use — Climbing the Pyramids— On Top — The Sphinx — The 
•v. Ovens — A Wedding — A Bargain — Their Camels — The Journey — 
The Bedouin Caravans — El Ansh — Over the Desert — Gaza. 



VI 



CONTENTS. 



Chapter VI 101 

Rollin reads from the Bible — The Gates carried off by Samson — 
The Natives — Uncle Joseph turns Doctor — The Smoke of a Christ- 
ian's Hair— Jaffa— The Port from which Jonah sailed— Convent 
of St. Peter— Scene of Napoleon's Massacre— Orange and Lemon 
Groves — Sunset on the Sea — The Call to Prayer — In the Mosque — 
Ramah — Valley of Jeremiah — Valley of Elah— Picking Stones 
from the place that David slew Goliath. 

Chapter VII 116- 

In sight of Jerusalem — Founding of Jerusalem — Rollin quotes 
History — The Siege — Destruction of the Temple — Tower of 
Davi-d — English Church — Gate of St. Stephens — Chapels — The 
Brook Cedron — Mt. Olivet — Mosque of Omar — Foot-print of 
Mohammed — Gethsemane. 

Chapter VIII 135 

Valley of Jehoshaphat — Pool of Siloam — Mount of Offence — 
Burying Place — Place of Judgment — The Streets of Jerusalem — 
Dolorous Way — Mount Zion — Chamber of the Last Supper — 
Needle's Eye — Well of the Magi — Superstitions. 

Chapter IX US 

Bethlehem — Church of the Nativity — Chapel of the Manger — 
Field of the Shepherds — Oriental Well — Pools of Solomon — 
Beads and Shells — Funeral — The Sam Wind — House of Pontius 
Pilate — Bethany — Going to Jericho — The Dead Sea — Bathing in 
the Dead Sea. 

Chapter X 169- 

Back to Jerusalem — Good Friday — The Services — The Dark 
Night — Tombs of the Kings — Scapus — Gibeah — Salutations — 
Rizpah — Mizpah — Pool of Gibeon — Bethel — Rock Rimmon — 
Shiloh. 

Chapter XI 189 

Start for Shechem— Camel Bands— Nablus— Mt. Gerizim— Sabbath 
Services — Jacob' s Well— Ebal — Samaria — Jenin— Esdraelon — 
Tabor— Napoleon's Battle— Nazareth— The Carpenter Shop. 

Chapter XII 21T 

Off for Tiberias— Down to Capernaum— Valley of Pigeons— Cana— 
Goats — Milking — History of Tiberias — Declining Sun — Hot 
Springs— Sea of Galilee— A ride on the Sea— Capernaum. 



CONTENTS. 



VII 



Chapter XIII 230 

Start down the Jordan — Uncle Joseph's Description— The Bridges — 
Bethsheen — History — The Sheepfold — Hand-mills — Churning — 
The Journey Resumed — The Fords — The Bathing of the Pil- 
grims — The Return. 

Chapter XIV 249 

The start for Baalbeck — Arabs — Lebanon — Cedars of Lebanon — 
Baalbeck — Ruins — Valle}' of the Abana — Enter Damascus — 
Mud hovels — The Bazaars — The age of Damascus — Silks — 
Arabian Nights — Head of John the Baptist — The soldiers. 

Chapter XV 266 

Dervishes — The Tekay — Dances — Sheik and Child — Off for Horns — 
Pilgrims from Mecca — Girl Slaves — Bargaining — The Feast — 
Palmyra — Back to Damascus — Start for Beirout — Mulberry Trees. 

Chapter XVI 296 

Sidon ahead — The walls — Bound for Tyre — Insular T3~re — Ezekial's 
words — Tomb of Hiram — Acre — St. Jean — Pasha of Djezza — 
Mount Carmel — Cesarea. 

Chapter XVII 326 

Sail for Rome— St. Peters— Pope Pius IX — The Vatican — Museum 
of Sculpture— Appian Way — The Catacombs — Badio — Incidents 
— The Coliseum — Homeward bound. 



THE PILGRIMS; 

OK, 

UNCLE JOSEPH AND ROLLIN THROUGH THE ORIENT, 



CHAPTER I. 

Uncle Joseph's health. — The Suggestion. — Rollins proposition. — 
Ocean voyage. — Arrival in Paris. — History of Paris. — Siege of 
Paris. — The Commune. — River Seine. — Notre Dame. — They 
attend Church services. — Sabbath desecration. — At Lyons. — Mar- 
seilles. — Embark for Candia. — The great fish. — In the port of 
Alexandria. N 



Those of my readers who have read "Fighting 
Giants," will remember Uncle Joseph as a hale and 
hearty old man, with a heart of love that delighted to 
interest the children in everything that was good and 
useful. They will also remember Rollin, the bright 
and enthusiastic boy, full of life and glee. Eight years 
have passed since then, and Rollin is a boy of seven- 
teen years, just completing his preparation for college. 

Uncle Joseph's health had been failing for several 
years, and was now in such a condition that his physi- 
cian advised him to travel, hoping that a change of 
climate would result in his recovery. But to this plan 
he could not give his consent. Mr. and Mrs. Marvin 
held a consultation, and thouo-ht that since Mr. Marvin 
could not leave his business, Rollin should accompany 
Uncle Joseph on some extended journey. They con- 
cluded, wisely, that a year's travel would only fit Rol- 
lin more fully to enter upon his college studies. 

9 



IO 



The Pilgrims. 



Mrs. Marvin, who, you will remember, was Uncle 
Joseph's sister, then went to her brother, and said: 
"We have concluded to let Rollin accompany you on 
a journey; do you not think you had better take a trip 
to England, France and Italy?" 

He replied: "I have seen all of those countries, all 
the classical beauties most worthy of attention are im- 
pressed upon my memory, and for their frivolities I 
have neither spirit nor taste." 

Then Rollin, who was anxiously awaiting a reply , 
said: " Uncle Joseph, I can readily believe that you 
cannot be moved by any light causes of excitement; 
but pardon me, if I say there is one long journey, I 
think, could hardly fail to interest you, and I would 
only be too glad to accompany you." 

"Indeed!" replied Uncle Joseph, "Where would 
you wish us to go, Rollin?" 

"To Egypt and the Holy Land, dear Uncle; to 
those places consecrated in our hearts by the most 
sacred associations; to Jerusalem, that city which was 
once the most glorious city upon the face of the earth. 
To Bethlehem, where the Redeemer of the world was 
born; oh! and how I do long to walk on the Mount 
of Olives, where my Saviour so often walked with His 
disciples! and to weep on Mount Calvary, where He 
suffered! Surely, of all other objects of interest there 
are none so worthy of seeing as these. You know 
how you often read to me and my dear sisters the 
travels of Bruce and others through Egypt and Pales- 
tine, and what light it threw on many passages of 
Scripture; why should we not go? assured as we must 
be that the remains of antiquity, the confirmation of 



Arrival in Paris. 



historic facts, the awakening of devout emotions will 
not fail to interest you, and bring back the health you 
have striven in vain to secure? " 

This appeal had its desired effect, and Uncle Joseph 
responded: "My dear boy, I will accord to all your 
wishes, but we must remember there are great difficul- 
ties in our way, long and fatiguing journeys by land 
and sea." 

"I have thought of all that, dear Uncle," replied 
Rollin; "I shall consider myself your companion, 
your comforter, and I trust that, for your sake, God 
will support and smile upon us." 

Evervthine necessarv to facilitate the desires of the 
Pilgrims was soon arranged, because the friends of 
Uncle Joseph saw the necessity of his speedy depart- 
ure, and rejoiced to find that he had determined to 

We pass over the particulars of their peaceful ocean 
voyage and journey until their arrival in Paris, where 
thev remained a few davs, in order that Rollin mieht 
see the places worthy of attention. The libraries, 
museums, gardens, palaces and tombs were all visited; 
and with more especial attention to those places re- 
markable for their historical occurences, as Uncle 
Joseph knew that the remembrances so awakened 
would possess a stronger interest in the mind of Rollin 
in future years than any other. 

"Uncle Joseph, is there any reliable history of the 
founding of Paris?" inquired Rollin. 

Uncle Joseph replied: "The earliest notice of Paris 
occurs in Julius Caesar's Commentaries, in which it is 
described under the name of Lutitia, as a collection of 



12 The Pilgrims. 

mud huts, composing the chief settlement of the Parisii, 
a Gallic tribe conquered by the Romans. The ruins 
of the Palatium Thermarum, and of ancient altars, 




aqueducts, and other buildings, show that even in 
Roman times the city extended to both banks of the 
river Seine. Lutitia began in the fourth century to be 
known as Parisia, or Paris, from the Celtic tribe of the 



History of Pans. 



13 



Parisii, to whom it belonged. In the sixth century 
Paris was chosen by Clovis as the seat of government, 
and after having fallen into decay under the Carlo- 
vingian kings, in whose time it suffered severely from 
frequent invasions of the Northmen; it finally became 
in the tenth century the residence of Hugh Capet, the 
founder of the Capetian dynasty, and the capital of the 
Frankish monarchy. From this period Paris con- 
tinued rapidly to increase, and in two centuries it had 
doubled in size and population. In the middle ages 
Paris was divided into three distinct parts: — La Cite, 
on the islands; the Ville, on the right bank; and the 
quartier Latin, or university, on the left bank of the 
river. Louis XL did much to enlarge Paris, but its 
progress was again checked during the wars of the 
last of the Yalois, when the city had to sustain several 
sieges. On the accession of Henry IV. of Navarre, 
in 1589, a new era was opened to Paris. The improve- 
ments commenced under his reiom were -continued 
under the minority of his son, Louis XIII. Louis XIV. 
converted the old ramparts into public walks or boule- 
vards, organized a^regular system of police, established 
drainage and sewerage works, founded hospitals, alms- 
houses, public schools, scientific societies, and a library. 
The terrible days of the revolution caused a tempo- 
rary reaction.. The improvement of Paris was recom- 
mended on a newer and grander scale under the first 
Napoleon, when the new quays, bridges, markets, 
streets, squares and public gardens were created. All 
the treasures of art and science which conquest placed 
in his power, Were applied to the embellishment of 
Paris, in the restoration of which he spent more than 



The Pilgrims. 



$20,000,000 in twelve years. His downfall again ar- 
rested progress, and in many respects Paris fell behind 
other European cities. 

Renovations of various sorts were recommended 
under Louis Phillippe; but as late as 1834, much of 
the old style of things remained; the gutters ran down 
the middle of the streets, there was little underground 
drainage from the houses, oil lamps were suspended 
on cords over the middle of the thoroughfares, and, 
except in one or two streets, there were no side-pave- 
ments. It was reserved for Napoleon III. to render 
Paris the most commodious, splendid and beautiful of 
modern cities. When he commenced his improve- 
ments, Paris still consisted, in the main, of a labyrinth 
of narrow, dark, and ill-ventilated streets. He re- 
solved to pierce broad and straight thoroughfares 
through the midst of these, to preserve and connect 
all the finest existing squares and boulevards; and in 
lieu of the old houses pulled down in the heart of the 
town, to construct in a ring outside of it, a new city in 
the most improved style of modern architecture. 
Two straight and wide thoroughfares, parallel to and 
near to each other, crossed the whole width of Paris 
from North to South, through La Cite; a still greater 
thoroughfare was made to run the whole length of the 
city north of the river Seine, from East to West. 
The old boulevards were completed so as to form 
outer and inner circles of spacious streets — the former 
chiefly lying along the outskirts of the old city, the 
latter passing through and connecting a long line of 
distant suburbs. In the year 1867, when the Inter- 
national Exhibition was opened, Paris had become in 



Siege of Paris. 15 



all respects the most splendid city in Europe; and in 
that year was visited by upwards* of a million and a 
half of foreigners. Many further improvements were 
then contemplated. Xew botanical and zoological 
gardens were to be formed; the museums and class- 
rooms of the Jardin des Plantes were to be rebuilt; an 
underground railway was to be formed, crossing Paris 
from East to West; Montmartre was to be leveled, and 
the river Seine was to be deepened up to Grenelle, 
the point where it leaves the city; and then a harbor 
was to be formed for sea-going ships. Financial and 
political difficulties, however, were at hand, and the 
great scheme had to be posponed." 

"Indeed, I have been much interested in the history 
of this famous city," replied Rollin; "and remember 
something of the siege of Paris, by the Gernnans; I 
believe it continued from the 19th of Sept., 1870, to 
the 28th of January, 187 1." 

"Yes, you are quite correct," replied Uncle Joseph, 
"but that siege caused much less injury to the city 
than might have been expected — it was reserved for a 
section of the Parisian population to commit an act of 
vandalism without a parallel in modern times. On 
March 18th, the 'Red Republicans,' who had risen 
against the government, took possession of Paris. 
On March 27th the commune was declared the only law- 
ful government. Acts of pillage and wanton destruc- 
tion followed. On May 15th, the column erected in 
memory of Napoleon and the great army, in the place 
Vendome, one of the principal squares, was solemnly 
pulled down as 'a monument of tyranny.' The govern- 
ment troops under Marshal McMahon attacked the 



1 6 The Pilgrims. ' 

insurgents, and kept them from doing further mischief- 
The former succeeded in entering Paris on May 20th, 
and next day the communists began to systematically 




set fire with petroleum to a great number of the chief 
buildings of Paris — public and private. The fire for a 
time threatened to destroy the whole city. It raged 
with the greatest fury on the 24th, and was not checked 



River Seine. 



17 



until property had been lost to the value of millions, 
and historical monuments were destroyed which never 
can be replaced. The horror inspired by the commune 
for a time, drove the wealthy classes from the city, and 
it was feared that it would lose its prestige as a 
European capitol. This, however, has not proved to 
be the case. In the Autumn of 1873, all the private 
houses burnt had been rebuilt — the monuments only 
partially destroyed had been restored, and the streets 
and public places were as splendid and as gay as in 
the best days of the Empire." 

Our pilgrims visited the river Seine, and viewed 
some of its celebrated bridges; the Notre Dame was 
erected in 1500, and the Neuf was begun in 1578, and 
completed in 1604, by Henry IV. This latter crosses 
the Seine at the north of the Ile-de-la-Cite, is built on 
twelve arches, and abuts near the middle on a small 
peninsula, jutting out into the river, and planted with 
trees, which form a background to the statue of Henry 
IV. on horseback, which stands in the central open 
space on the bridge. 

They next visited the palace of the Tuileries, which 
was begun in 1 566 by Catherine de Medici, and en- 
larged by successive monarchs, while used as a royal 
residence, until it formed a structure nearly a quarter 
of a mile in length, running at right angles to the Seine. 
To the east of the Tuileries, at a distance of more than 
a quarter of a mile, was erected the palace of the 
Louvre, forming a square of 576 feet, by 538 feet, re- 
markable, especially the eastern facade, for its archi- 
tectural beauty. Rollin was much interested in these 
things, and to his anxious questions Uncle Joseph 
2 



1 8 The Pilgrims. 

responded: "The Louvre long since ceased to be a 
royal residence, and has been converted into a public 




museum of antiquities. It was connected with the 
Tuileries by a great picture gallery overlooking the 
Seine, and 1456 feet in length. North of the picture 



Notre Dame. 



19 



gallery, and between the two palaces, lay the place du 
Carrousel, into the northern side of which, at the ac- 
cession of Napoleon III., there intruded a mass of poor 
and narrow streets. One of the Emperor's earliest 
improvements was to remove these buildings, and 
connect the Tuileries and Louvre on the northern side, 
throwing them into one vast building, forming the 
most magnificent palatial structure in the world. The 
Tuileries continued to be occupied as the residence of 
the Imperial family; but the Louvre proper formed a 
series of great galleries with pictures, sculptures, and 
collections of Greek, Egyptians, and Roman antiqui- 
ties. The communists attempted to burn the whole 
pile, but fortunately only succeeded in destroying the 
Tuileries and the North-western corner of the Louvre. 
The library of the Louvre, with its contents, was 
burned, but the rest of the building with its priceless 
treasures were saved. A large sum was voted by the 
government for the restoration of the Louvre, and this 
work was at once undertaken and carried forward with 
the utmost dispatch. North of the injured part of the 
Louvre is the palace Royale, the most valuable part 
of which, fronting the rue St. Honore, was set fire to 
by order of the commune in 1871. The palace of the 
Luxembourg, on the South side of the Seine, was 
built by Marie di Medici, in the Florentine style. 
It contains many magnificent rooms, some of which 
have been employed as picture galleries for the works 
of modern artists. The Luxembourg was formerly 
the house of the peers, but since 1S71 it has been used 
as the hotel de Ville." 

Rollin expressed a desire to see some of the churches 



20 



The Pilgrims. 



of the city, in this desire Uncle Joseph acqusced, 
saying: " in a historic point of view, the most inter- 
esting is the Cathedral of Notre Dame, which stands on 
a site successively occupied by a Pagan temple, and a 
Christian baslica of the time of the Merovingian king's. 
The present building was constructed between the 
twelfth and fifteenth centuries; and in its present state 
of restored magnificence it may rank as one of the 
noblest specimens of Gothic architecture. St. Ger- 
mains-des-Pres, which is probably the most ancient 
church in Paris, was completed in 1163; St. Etienne 
du Mont, and St. Germains 1' Auxerrois, both ancient, 
are interesting — the former for its picturesque and 
quaint decorations, and for containing the tomb of 
St. Genevieve, the patron Saint of Paris; and the lat- 
ter for its rich decorations and the frescoed portal, re- 
stored at the wish of Margaret of Valois. The Sainte 
Chappelle, built by St. Louis in 1245—48, for the re* 
ception of the various relics, which he had brought 
from the Holy Land, is one of the most remarkable- 
buildings in Paris, profusely decorated in all parts with 
brilliantly colored materials. Its present beauty is en- 
tirely due to the restoration completed by the late- 
Emperor at a cost of $250,000." 

Rollin was greatly pleased with the scenes of the 
day; and returned to the hotel filled with new delights 
and aspirations. 

The following day was the Sabbath, and our Pilgrims, 
like true Christians, attended a Protestant church, and 
heard an excellent sermon. When they came out of 
the church, Rollin was surprised and shocked to see 
that nearly every person around them seemed to be. 



At Lyons. 



21 



running about on some scheme of pleasure, a mode 
of conduct so different to all the notions of duty im- 
planted in his mind, and to everything he had wit- 
nessed in his quiet Pennsylvania village. On the 
following morning they left the gay city of Paris, 
without any regrets, in consequences of the disgust 
and awe excited by the scenes on the Holy Sabbath 
day. 




PALACE ON THE SEINE. 



Our travelers proceeded to Lyons, long celebrated 
for its silk manufactory; and thence to Marseilles, an 
ancient and beautiful place, where they were under the 
necessity of remaining some time, as they had directed 
that all their necessary letters for the East should be 
forwarded thither. The principal of these was a letter 
from the authorities at Rome, addressed to the heads 
of convents in the Holy Land, which was promised 
through the intercession of friends, and this, together 
with introductions to various American, English and 



22 The Pilgrims. 

French consuls, and several travelers of note, they 
were fortunate to receive in due time. 




NOTRE DAME. 



Here also they purchased such things as were likely 
to be of use to them, particularly watches and spy- 
glasses, and as much money in specie as they could 
manage to take conveniently; for they were informed 



Embark for Candia. 



23 



that there might be difficulty in procuring it at Alex- 
andria. 

At length, in the latter part of September, they em- 
barked for Candia, anciently called Crete, the birth- 
place of the fabulous Jupiter, and the place where 
St. Paul himself planted the Gospel. It will be readily 
supposed that Rollin, whose mind was filled with those 
classical images, imbibed from his late studies, and to 
whom Grecian heroes and the scenes of their exploits 
were necessarily most familiar, should feel his heart 
warm as he approached the first place where he could, 
indeed, feast his eyes by an actual survey of land im- 
mortalized alike by history and poetry. 

But alas! Candia was far different to all that im- 
agination taught him to expect; it was inhabited by 
Mohammedans, and the few Greeks, scattered among 
them in their slavery and poverty, awakened only 
sentiments of regret for their dreadful situation, as 
the servants of an unbelieving race. Thick fogs, very 
prevalent at this place, prevented them from seeing 
the shores of Greece; but when they had left Candia, 
the breeze cleared, and they observed quantities of 
swallows in a state of migration, and they had before 
them every prospect of a swift and pleasant voyage to 
Alexandria, whither they were bound. 

Already they had espied curious obelisks, and re- 
marked that from the exceeding purity of the air, the 
beauty of the starry heavens were increased manifold, 
and thereby an opportunity given to ancient Egyptians 
to study astronomy to the greatest advantage; when 
suddenly a sharp breeze set in from the land, and their 
hopes were disappointed. In a short time the gale 



24 



The Pilgrims. 



increased to an alarming degree, and they saw im- 
mense water-spouts forming between the sea and the 
sky, which excited the greatest alarm in the crew. 
All night and most of the following day the vessel 
was "driven to and fro like a drunken man," and the 
passengers were obliged to remain under the hatches, 
to the great mortification of Rollin; but at length it 
pleased God to rebuke the winds and the waves; all 
things grew serene, and with renewed hopes the trav- 
elers again sprang upon the deck. 

"Look, Uncle Joseph," said Rollin, "What large 
fish are sporting now that the storm is over; some of 
them are nearly "as long as the ship." 

" Yes, they are, and some are longer than the vessel/' 
replied Uncle Joseph; "I am glad we happen to see 
them, they confirm the truth of the Scripture statement 
respecting Jonah, who was swallowed by a great fish 
in these waters, whereas some infidels have asserted 
that no laree fish have ever been seen in them." 

"Yes," responded Rollin, "I have just been reading 
some of the attempts of infidel writers to explain away 
the account of the fish swallowing Jonah; they said 
that when Jonah was thrown overboard, he swam 
for his life, earnestly praying God to preserve him 
from drowning; and by His Providence he was thrown 
into a place of fish, a fishing cove, where he was for a 
time entangled among the weeds, and hardly escaped 
with his life; and, when safe, he composed his poetic 
prayer, which some have wrongly interpreted, by sup- 
posing that he was swallowed by a fish ; when the 
Hebrew word dag should have been understood as a 
place offish^ or fishing creek!' 



The Great Fish. 



25 



Uncle Joseph answered, ''These attempts to explain 
away that wonderful miracle, have long since been ex- 
ploded; now, I say, the original has no such meaning 
in the Bible; and this gloss is plainly contrary to the 
letter of the text, to all sober and rational modes of 
interpretation, and to the express purpose for which 
God appears to have wrought this miracle, and to which 
Jesus Christ Himself applies it. For as Jonah was in- 
tended for a sign to the Jews of the resurrection of 
Christ, they were to have the proof of this sign, in 
His lying as long in the heart of the earth, as the pro- 
phet was in the belly of the fish ; and all interpretations 
of this kind go to deny both the sign and the thing 
signified. Some men, because they cannot work a 
miracle themselves, can hardly be persuaded that God 
can do it. 

"The text, and the use made of it by Christ, most 
plainly teach us, that the prophet was literally swal- 
lowed by a fish, by the order of God; and that by the 
Divine power he was preserved alive, for what is called 
three days and three flights, in the stomach of the fish ; 
and at the conclusion of that time that same fish 
was led by the unseen power of God to the shore, and 
there compelled to eject the prey that he could neither 
kill nor digest. And how easy is all this to the almighty 
power of the Author and Sustainer of life, who has a 
sovereign, omnipresent, and energetic sway in the 
heavens and in the earth. But foolish man will affect 
to be wise; though, in such cases, he appears as the 
recent born stupid offspring of the wild ass. It is bad 
to follow fancy, where there is so much at stake. Both 
.ancients and moderns have grievously trifled with this 



26 



The Pilgrims, 



prophet's narrative; merely because they could not 
rationally account for the thing, and were unwilling 
to allow any miraculous interference." 

They were now speedily wafted into the port of 
Alexandria, where they found numerous vessels, of all 
nations, waiting to be laded with corn, such is the 
fruitfulness of the land of Egypt, that, even under all 
the disadvantages of government it has long experi- 
enced, it is yet a mighty granary for surrounding 
countries; and, in the midst of many sufferings and 
privations, has continued to be a place of "commercial 
importance. 



Caliph Omar. 



27 



CHAPTER II. 

Hail to the land of Egypt, — Caliph Omar. — Pompey. — Mausoleum of 
Alexander. — Saracenic Conquest. — Pillar of Pompey. — Obe- 
lisks. — Rossetta. — Camels. — Cleopatra's Needle. — A Funeral. — ■ 
Arab School. — The Nile. — Buloe. — Cairo. — Joseph's Well. — 
Baths of Cairo. — Street pedlars. 

"Hail! dear Uncle Joseph," greeted Rollin, " to* 
the land of Egypt, the most ancient of all countries, 
or at least of all nations, or perhaps I ought to say, 
of all seats of Empires." 

"You are right," replied Uncle Joseph, "Egypt is 
the oldest kingdom since the flood, undoubtedly — is 
also the mother of science and arts, and the place 
where the true God most signally displayed his power 
in behalf of his people; it is a country full of great and 
extraordinary interest." 

"Oh, yes! I well remember," responded Rollin, 
"the city before us was built by Alexander the Great, 
and at one time it contained the finest library the world 
ever saw, before printing was invented, and it w f as 
burned by order of the Caliph Omar, in 641 A. D. 
Here lived Cleopatra in a style of magnificence no 
modern potentate can rival, and here she died, by her 
own hand, in the midst of treasures she could no 
longer secure; and on these very sands, poor Pompey, 
whose greatness had once filled the world, after dying 
by the hand of an assassin, found a wretched grave." 

" You are quite right," responded Uncle Joseph, 
"and in addition to what you have said, anciently 
two great streets crossed each other at right angles; 



28 



The Pilgrims. 



in their intersected square was the superb mausoleum, 
which held the body of Alexander. It was embalmed 
in Babylon, and brought hither with dazzling pomp 
and laid in its resting place with honors due to a god. 
The warmest fancy cannot raise from these ashes the 
city declared the centre of Alexander's world, when 
all was conquered. It was circled with stupendous 
walls, fifteen miles in circumference. Read Gibbon 




MAP OF EGYPT. 



for accounts of it in the days of its glory, when the 
revenues of a province were allotted the crown princess 
for her sandal-strings, when idleness was unknown 
among the people, and even the lame and the blind 
had industries suited to their condition. 

"After the Saracenic conquest, the temples of Alex- 
andria were one by one torn to pieces to build Cairo, 
the City of Victory, and in one Turkish mosque there 
are four hundred Greek columns from this fallen star 



Pompeys Pillar. 



29 



in the East, once a shrine to scholars, and the greatest 
depository of learning in the world. The desolate 
column, known as Pompeys Pillar, is the last survivor 




OBELISKS OF LUXAR. 



of the four hundred belonging to the Temple of Serapis, 
the noblest building then on the face of the elobe, ex- 

<_> o 

cept the Capitol at Rome. This shaft was perhaps 



The Pilzr 



i ms. 



30 

part of the quadrangular portico, a matchless work, 
which sheltered marble statues, the best of Grecian 
genius, and was reached by one hundred steps of 
purest marble." 

From those contemplations of the past, the pilgrims 
were necessarily withdrawn to consider the present; 
everything around bespoke the necessity of taking 





OBELISKS OF LUXAR. 



care of themselves and their property, and of engag- 
ing immediately the attendants necessary for their 
situation. 

The beauty of the climate, the novelty of all around 
them, and the great importance of the subjects of their 
curiosity made everything seem light in their eyes, 



Cleopatra s Needle. 



3i 



but the great object of their journey. They set out 
the following day to visit the Pillar of Pompey, which 
stands on the south side of the walls. It is about 
one hundred feet high, of red granite, with a Corinth- 
ian capital; the pedestal on which it is erected has 
been partly excavated and taken away, so that this 
beautiful pillar leans a little, and it is really wonderful 
that it has re- 
mained so long. 
At one time it 
was nearly de- 
stroyed by some 
Arabs, who laid 
a plan for blow- 
ing it up with 
gun - powder. 
Several English 
sailors and one 
Irish lady have 
climbed to the 
top by means of 
a rope, which 
was fastened by 
flying a kite; all 
of this was ex- 




) 




CLEOPATRA'S NEEDLE. 



plained to Rollin by Uncle Joseph. When Rollin 
heard of this last, he became desirious of achieving 
a similar exploit, but could not find any person who 
could render him the assistance needed. 

Next they visited the curious obelisks, for which 
Egypt is famous. Two of the obelisks were called 
the Needles of Cleopatra, celebrated for ages, and 



32 



The Pilgrims. 



are supposed to have been erected at the entrance 
of the road to Cleopatra's palace; they were square 
columns of red granite, on which were engraved 
numerous hieroglyphics upward of an inch in depth, 
they were about seventy feet high, and the pedestal 
nine feet high. They have both been removed, one 
to London, and the other to New York, where they 
have been put into position, and are visited by thou- 
sands of people. The one in London lay prostrate 
for centuries in sand and mud by Pompey's Pillar, and 
now stands alone and gloomy in the murky air of the 
Thames, above Waterloo bridge. 

Rollin inquired of Uncle Joseph the probable use 
or meaning of these obelisks, to which Uncle Joseph 
replied: "The obelisks were symbols of sunbeams, or 
taper fingers of the sun, ever pointing upward to the 
flaming god of Eastern idolatry. They were from the 
sacred and learned city of On — city of the evening 
sun, seat of solar worship — where Joseph married the 
priest's daughter. They may have seen him and his 
bride, with their arms around each other's neck, posed 
like the sculptured figures about us, bearing the bland, 
restful expression of a stately pair, linked in loving 
marriage. The continual recurrence, of such pictures 
of husband and wife, with arms entwined, makes us 
think, those wedded lovers in old times were of a race 
not only affectionate, but demonstrative, and not 
ashamed of public stare or criticism. 

"In the year 357, Constantius, son of Constantine, 
wished to present the Romans some memorial of his 
gratitude for their munificence. He thought first of 
offering an equestrian statute, but concluded an obelisk 



Obelisks. 23 

from Heliopolis would be the most kingly present to 
the most arrogant of his allies. 

"The death of Constantine had suspended the trans- 
portation of one of these marvelous pillars, and left it, 
after floating down the Nile, neglected at the city of 
Alexandria. Constantius had a special vessel pro- 




ORIENTAL HOUSE-TOP. 

vided to convey the tremendous weight, and it was 
safely transferred from the Nile to the Tiber, and 
raised with great rejoicings and solemn ceremonies, in 
the Circus Maximus at Rome. Long- before, Auo-us- 
tus had embellished the amphitheater with a similar 
trophy, and the Emperor doubtless dreamed, as he sat 
alone in his sacred car, dazzling the sight with robes 
encrusted with gems, that the obelisk he offered to 
3 



34 



The Pilgrims. 



propitiate the populace would remain till the sun him- 
self should die. The scholars of the nineteenth cen- 
tury are doubtful if it still exists. In what siege of the 
many Roman sieges, or in what earthquake the shaft 
was overthrown, is not known. The antiquary vainly 
seeks its history and its fragments, if they be spared 
from barbarian fury and violence." 

Having satisfied their curiosity as to Alexandria, 
they set out for Rossetta, their way lay across the 
desert, traveling on mules, the motion of which they 
preferred to the slow, stately tread of the camels, 
which are commonly used in that country. 

After a long and wearisome day's journey, they 
were compelled to spend the night in a miserable inn, 
which, literally swarmed with Arabs, whose wild, 
savage countenances and gestures could scarcely fail 
to excite alarm in a small company of strangers. 

The following day they saw many camels loaded 
with merchandise, piled upon their backs to an alarm- 
ing height; others had panniers of wicker-work thrown 
on either side, in which were placed women and chil- 
dren. At night they lodged in a caravansary, which 
is a large open building erected at the public expense, 
and providing shelter and refreshments, in that respect 
differing- from a khan, which is likewise a kind of inn, 
but provides only a place of rest. 

After spending the night as comfortably as possible, 
and partaking of a light breakfast, the pilgrims re- 
sumed their journey. Uncle Joseph remarked to 
Rollin: "There can be no doubt but these places are 
precisely the same as those used in the time of our 
Lord, since it appears that the Good Samaritan left 



Rossetta, 



35 



the wounded man under the care of one who kept a 
caravansary, or inn." 

Soon, to their great joy, Rossetta appeared in view, 
and as it is for the most part flat-roofed, and there are 
plants growing on the housetops, and many gardens 
surrounding the town; its appearance was extremely 
gratifying, and promised the comforts which our pil- 
grims greatly needed. 




EASTERN COURT. 



But alas! this promise to the eye was not realized 
on their arrival, for the same wretchedness was found 
here as they had experienced before. On entering 
the town, they observed a dead body, which, being 
washed and arrayed in all its best clothes, men were 
carrying out to bury without any further covering. 

Rollin was much astonished at this procedure, and 
asked an explanation of Uncle Joseph, who replied: 



36 



The Pilgrims. 



"The extreme heat of this climate makes it necessary 
to be in great haste in burying the dead, sometimes 
scarcely two hours elapse between the death and 
burial. Often some members of a family will return 
from a visit or business trip, to find other members 
of the family already buried." 

"That will explain to my full satisfaction the story 
of Ananias, who, it appears, was buried without his 
wife's knowledge." said Rollin. 

In passing the streets, Rollin was much surprised 
by seeing a group of ragged children in a circle, whom 
he soon became aware, were learning- somethings 
The master sat cross-leg;g;ed on a board, rocking- his 
body to and fro, and holding a stick over the head of 
that pupil who appeared to be repeating his lesson, 
and who also rocked his body in sympathy, and looked 
as if he were in a state of idiotism. Afterward a 
board was brought covered with sand, on which each 
boy wrote. This method of "teaching school" was 
quite novel and amusing to both Uncle Joseph and 
Rollin. 

The palm trees of Rossetta are very fine, and our 
pilgrims were much interested in seeing the Arabs 
gathering the dates from them by means of a basket 
and a rope, which they threw around the tree, so as to 
go up step by step to the branches. 

They now* embarked on the celebrated Nile, and 
for the length of their very pleasant voyage saw around 
them the remarkable country to the best advantage. 
The stately palm trees, the view of Mosque and Min- 
arets, and the springing of the second crops gave a 
charming appearance to the country, but it was only 



Cairo. 37 

so because the mud-huts and the filthy inhabitants 
were kept out of sight, for even in the vessel in which 
they were, everything gave indication of the same un- 
cleanliness and wretchedness so prevalent in Egypt. 




ARAB SCHOOL. 



They landed at Bulac, a short distance from Cairo, 
whither, accompanied by their interpreter, they walked, 
following their baggage, of which they did not lose 
sight till they had succeeded in getting lodgings, 
though it was a very miserable place. Uncle Joseph 



38 



The Pilgrims. 



told Rollin that the full name of this city is El Cahiro — 
or Kahiro, and it means magnificent, or splendid. 
Rollin wondered how this place came to be called 
Grand Cairo. On every side he saw nothing but 
filthy, miserable streets, houses with shattered win- 
dows, rooms covered with cob webs at the top, and 
filth of every kind below. To him it appeared only 
a grand emporium of all disagreeable things. 

They visited Joseph's 
well, which is dug in the 
rock two hundred and 
eighty feet, and is forty 
feet in circumference; a 
winding stair-case leads 
gradually to the bottom, 
where oxen are em- 
ployed in turning the 
wheels, by which a con- 
stant supply of water is 
Moslem school-boy. thrown up for the use 

of the citadel. The machinery resembles the chain- 
pumps of an old man-of-war; about six hundred 
earthen pitchers are attached at certain distances to 
ropes, those descending being inverted, those ascend- 
ing upright, and filled with water. 

Rollin inquired whether it was Joseph the patriarch 
who had dug this well, or why it was called "Joseph's 
Well?" 

Uncle Joseph replied: "It is generally attributed 
to Joseph the patriarch, but I think wrongly so. There 
was a Mohammedan visier by the name of Joseph, 
and his tomb is right there on the right hand side of 




yosepJi s Well. 



39 



the well, near the bottom, with a lamp constantly 
burning before it; I am confident it was dug under 
his direction, and received the name of 'Joseph's Weir 
from him, and not from the patriarch Joseph." 

They next visited several bazaars, and found the 
rich merchandise displayed very imposing. Fine 
Persian shawls, to the value of a thousand dollars, 
were not uncommon; but what attracted the attention 
of Rollin as the most singular thine. was to see the 
men employed in embroidery, which they performed 
in the most ingenious manner, when not employed by 
a customer. 

They next visited the hummums, or baths of Cairo, 
which are very handsome ; but the numerous mosques 
attracted their attention still more. One of these had 
been anciently a Christian church, supported by over 
a hundred columns, collected from other edifices. 
The most magnificent is the Kubal-Azal, being cov- 
ered with a majestic dome, elevated on a base of six- 
teen sides; the walls are adorned with red and green 
porphyry, inscriptions in gilding, lamps, and glittering 
ornaments. They have also a Synagogue, which has 
existed over one thousand six hundred years, as they 
assert, and which is said to be built on the place 
where Jeremiah, the prophet, once resided; and they 
also boast of possessing a copy of the laws written by 
Ezra. But Uncle Joseph told Rollin, those things 
could not be depended upon, as the people were given 
to exaggeration. 

The city was full of life. Rollin inquired why this 
was so? whereupon Uncle Joseph replied: "One rea- 
son for this may be the fine weather, which allows 



4Q 



The Pilgrims, 




PALit IEEE. 



Street Pedlars. 



41 



the inhabitants to pass their time out of doors. Cer- 
tainly there are many trades carried on in the streets, 
and consequently there are many street cries. Apart 
from mere difference in language, these are not like 
those called in our streets. Our street hawkers are 
so matter-of-fact, that they simply call out by name 
what they have to sell. Not so the Egyptians. They 
introduce some poetry — or, at all events, something 
striking, into their cry — we will now listen to them." 
They soon heard the seller of sour limes crying: "God 
make them light!" (meaning easy of sale) "O limes!" 
The hawker of oranges cried: "Honey, O oranges, 
honey!" Flowers of the sweet smelling henna (the 
Egyptian prisit) were called by the seller: "Odors 
of Paradise! O flowers of the henna!" The water- 
seller cried: "Oh, may God reward me!" 

Many other things were cried in the street, includ- 
ing" sherbet and other cooling drinks, such as " ark- 
soos" or licorice water; " yeheeh" an infusion of rai- 
sins and pieces of green sugar-cane brought in from 
the fields. They now saw a seller of " halaweh" 
sweetmeats composed of treacle of sugar, fried with 
other ingredients. His cry was: "For a nail. O 
sweetmeat! " 

Uncle Joseph explained this singular manner of 
trading to be like some of the rag and bone men in 
our country towns. The sweetmeat seller is also a 
barterer, and for old pieces of iron gave some of his 
sweets. Iron is of value in a country where it is not 
manufactured, while rags and bones are of little or no 
value, where they would not be made into anything, 
such as paper or ivory black, as they would be in our 



42 



The Pilgrims. 



country. As every old rusty nail or scrap of iron cart 
be exchanged for a sweet morsel, it is likely that chil- 
dren are often seen at this stall of the small confec- 
tions. When he has finished in one street he can 
move to the next. His stand is light, for it is made 
of reeds from the Nile. His tray is also light, for it 
is made of straws, bound together in one long, thin 
bundle, and curled and tied round and round from the 
centre, as is a straw beehive, the difference being that 
in this case the work is made nearly flat. The whole, 
therefore, including the stock in trade, can easily be 
carried to a new neighborhood, and if customers do 
not come to the sweetmeat seller, he can go to them; 
like the old story of Mohammed and the mountain. 



Climate of Egypt, 



43 



CHAPTER III. 

Climate of Egypt — The Mule — Donkey Boys — Watermelons — 
Crossing of the Nile — Cool Shade — Egyptian Children — The 
Cradle — Cats — Girl names — Miss Whateley's School — A beautiful 
incident — Conversation — Manners and Customs. 



The hot climate in Egypt, with its enervating effect 
— combined, in Cairo, with the crowded state of the 
thoroughfares and the powdery, dusty roadways — 
causes the inhabitants who can afford to keep a horse, 
a mule or an ass, to be seldom seen walking far be- 
yond the threshold of their own doors. In past days, 
very few of the people of Cairo, or the other towns, 
would expose themselves to the suspicion of having 
any superfluous wealth by keeping horses, and thus 
be liable to greater exactions on the part of the gov- 
ernment than otherwise they would suffer. But now 
horses and carriages are more general. 

Mules are used for riding by rich merchants and 
the priests. The saddle used for the mule is nearly 
the same as that used on the ass. The priest's saddle,, 
however, is covered with a prayer carpet. 

Asses are mostly in use for riding through the nar- 
row and crowded streets of Cairo, and numbers of 
them, attended by the donkey-boys, are for hire. ; 
They are, one may say, the cabs of Cairo. They are 
not much taller than the asses of our own country, 
but are of better frame, and, speaking generally, in 
better condition. The striking peculiarity about them 
is that they are shaved, excepting on the legs. If the 



44 



The Pilgri7ns. 



legs are white, we have the strange sight of a donkey 
with a nearly black, polished skin, without a vestige 
of hair, but white legs, and a pattern cut in the hair 
where the shaven and unshaven parts join. The sad- 
dle is much raised by its padding above the back of 
the animal. The fore part is covered with red leather, 
and the seat most commonly with a kind of soft woolen 




RUINS IN EGYPT. 

lace similar to our coach lace, of red, yellow and other 
colors. A servant eoes before the rider, calling" to 
the passengers to move out of the way, to the right 
or left, or to take care of their backs, sides, faces, feet 
or heels. Despite this precaution, however, the rider 
may be thrown down by the wide load of camels in 
passing. Our travelers saw a large number of the 
donkey-boys, who are a very lively and pushing race, 
and are untiring in their efforts to obtain customers, 
and afterwards in their attendance on the hirer and 



Watermelons. 



45 



his steed during- the ride. The donkey-boys com- 
mence their daily business with much noise, shouting 
and quarreling. They generally pick up some foreign 
words and phrases, and think themselves very clever 
if they make use of them. The donkey has a foreign 
name, to begin with "Jack Sprat ! hoo ! good donkey! 
Take Jack Sprat! Ned Noggins! Sam! fine donkey! 
Take Ned Noggins! " then when they have induced any 
" Franks " (European) to hire them and their donkeys, 
they brandish their cudgels, and whoop, and laugh,, 
and shout, to advise all foot-passengers of the danger 
they are in of being run over. "Take care!" they shout 
to a Frank; "Sakim!" to a Turk; " Yakhawageh! Ya 
bint!" you woman, you girl! out of the way! "Yah 
sheiks! Mind, old man! Yemeenek! to the right! 
Shimalek! to the left!" So they shout and screech to 
drown the voices of the small street venders, their rivals 
in noise. "Honey! oh, honey!" sings out one of these 
latter. "Oh, oranges! oh, grapes! consolers of the 
mournful! Pips! pips!" (watermelons) cries another. 
" Oh! roses, blossoming from the sweat of the prophet! 
Sycamore figs! oh, odors of paradise! Oh, henna! 
for the lovely finger-tips of the youthful, for the hair 
of the aged, for the beautifying of the tails of steeds! 
oh, henna! " 

There is a road for carriages from Cairo to the 
Pyramids of fifteen miles, there and back, but still the 
journey is frequently made on donkeys, and the boys 
run nearly all the way. At the crossing of the Nile 
it was amusing for them to see the donkeys put into 
the ferry-boat. The animal's fore-legs were lifted 
over the gunwale, and his fore-feet being placed on 



Egyptian Children. 



47 



the deck, his hind legs were then lifted, and he was 
spun upon the deck, sometimes skating some distance 
upon the boards. Rollin was especially greatly amused 
to see this performance, and was loath to pass on to 
other scenes. 

The Pilgrims sat down under some beautiful palm 
trees, enjoying the cool shade, when Uncle Joseph 
began: " Rollin, perhaps it would interest you to know 
something of the Egyptian children? " Rollin replied: 
"Indeed, Uncle! nothing would be more interesting 
to me at this time." 

Uncle Joseph continued: "As soon as an Egyptian 
child is born, superstitious fears beset his path, the 
4 evil eye ' may fall on him, and so he is left unwashed 
and undressed, and rendered as unlovely as possible, 
in the hope that this malicious power, the 'evil eye,' 
may pass him over unobserved and unmolested. 
Not content with leaving him unwashed, the mother 
blackens his forehead or his cheeks with soot or clay, 
or even covers him with a thick black veil, in her anx- 
iety to save him from imaginary ills; and friends and 
relatives coming to visit him or his parents, are careful 
to say, 'What an ugly child! Why, he is a perfect 
fright! ' to which strange compliments the smiling father 
and mother listen complacently, as they know that this 
form of speech is adapted to deceive their enemy. 

" Poor deluded parents ! Instead of saving their child 
from the 'evil eye,' they give it to him; for the sad- 
dest thing in this miserable superstition is that the 
poor children so neglected and dirty, fall victims to 
the disease, very common to this country, called oph- 
thalmios; and they often lose the sight of one eye, if 



4 8 



The Pilgrims. 



they do not become, as in most cases, completely blind. 

"Not until the child of a Moslem or Turk is one year 
old does it get its first washing. They do not think 
it lucky to let a drop of water touch the baby till it is 
baptized, then it is immersed; but this dipping has to 
last a long time, 

"And what is the cradle of this little boy? You 
would guess a long time before you found the right 
answer; and yet it is a very appropriate one, suiting 
its home, its surroundings, and its own dirty condition. 
In the summer-time it is the mud outside of the house, 
in the winter-time it is the mud inside the house. The 
hut itself is built of mud, as you notice, the roof is 
composed of paches of mud plastered on rough beams, 
or on some bundles of reeds. Windows there are 
none, furniture there is none, beds there are none. 
Sometimes the baby is wrapped up in its mother's 
dirty face- veil, and stowed away in a corner; but more 
frequently it has no clothing on at all, or anything else 
to serve as a bed. Comfortless indeed would the life 
of a little child be, if the soft Egyptian air did not 
surround him, and the bright Egyptian sun look down 
upon him. 

"Mohammed was fond of cats, and all his follow- 
ers are so, too. Moreover, there was in former times 
a festival held at Bubastis, in the Eastern Delta, to the 
goddess Bart, or Sekhet, who was represented by the 
head of a cat, and to Bubastis, mummies of favorite 
cats were sent for preservation. Sometimes even a 
cat was called Bubastis, but now its familiar name is 
maw or mie, showing that the language of Egyptian 
cats is not unlike that of your own domestic pets. 



Egyptian Children. 49 

"The children are allowed the companionship of 
cats, and when they have outgrown the guardianship 
and companionship of the cat, they find play-fellows in 




the uncouth buffalos, riding them to and fro from 
the stream, or playing with the calf-buffaloes on the 
bank of the river ; and then they are sent to one of 
the Arab primary schools to learn to read and recite 
the Koran, and write a little ; after which they must 



50 



The Pilgrims. 



begin to work for their living, either in the cotton-fields, 
or at the dams or dykes that are constructed to keep 
the water of the Nile when it rises from inundating: 
the whole country ; or they help to sow the seeds 
when the waters have subsided, or they work the 
shadoof, a machine which is used for raising water, or 
serve as sellers of goods, or as donkey-boys in the 
streets of the different towns. Girls are generally 
given names of pretty signification, as 'Gazelle/ 
'Flower/ 'Princess/ etc. Boys are frequently called 
'Georgas' (George), as St. George is the patron saint 
of the Egyptians. A strange custom prevails with 
regard to names. Three wax candles are lighted, to 
each a name is given, one belonging to a saint among 
them, — the taper that burns the longest gives the child 
its name. 

" Little as Egyptian children learn, as a rule, they 
are taught two very important things — great reverence 
for their parents and for the aged. This is the more 
remarkable, since they are left to grow up the best 
way they can, and in the abodes of the rich, in town, 
the children are spoiled and pampered to their heart's 
content — the girls are brought up in idleness, waited 
upon by a number of slaves, and the boys are thought 
wonderfully clever if they can read and write, recite 
the Koran, and work out an ordinary sum. 

"The Scriptures have promised that the Egyptians 
shall know the Lord ; and that Israel shall be the 
third with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst 
of the land; whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, say- 
ing: 'Blessed he Egypt my people, and Assyria, the 
work of my hands, and Israel, my inheritance.' " 



Miss Whateley s School. 



5i 



" It is with no small interest that Christians watch 
the spread of the Gospel up and down this valley of 
the Nile. For many years Miss Whately, daughter 
of the Archbishop of Dublin, has been laboring 
among the Egyptian children in this city, and her 
labor is not in vain in the Lord. The Gospel is still 
the power of God unto salvation to every one that 
believeth, not only to the Jew and the Greek, but also 
to the Barbarian and the Egyptian. I think it would 
pay us well to visit her school." 

To this proposition Rollin readily consented. They 
had no difficulty whatever in finding the school-room. 
Miss Whateley was greatly pleased in having the 
Americans call upon her; and after a pleasant conver- 
sation, Uncle Joseph complimented her upon the suc- 
cess she was meeting with. To this Miss Whateley 
replied: "It is indeed a pleasure to labor in this field, 
so white for the harvest. I have much to encourage 
me in my mission work, and it is such a joy to know 
that these poor souls are led to know the Saviour. 

"An instance of the love of Him who is able to 
save to the uttermost all who come to Him through 
Christ, happened a short time ago, when two nice lit- 
tle boys attended my school, and, like all our scholars, 
had the Bible to study. All do not progress alike, 
however; and as children are naturally full of play on 
leaving school, I was much struck with what I was 
told of these children reading from the New Testa- 
ment to an old negress, who had brought them up and 
who was much attached to them. 

"It seems this woman was in feeble health, and her 
great delight was to listen to what her young favorites 



52 



The Pilgrims. 



read to her on their return from school, and they often 
spent some time by her bed thus employed, instead 
of playing; which I think showed there was both love 
and religious feeling in their hearts. 

"When, after some months, the old woman became 
worse, and was evidently near death, some Moslem 
slaves, who were her friends, offered to fetch the 
'Mollah] who is the person somewhat answering to a 
minister, though not exactly, and who reads from their 
Koran to dying persons. She refused, however, and 
when they urged her strongly, her master, who was 
of the Christian persuasion, overheard her reply, 'No, 
no; I want no one but Him whom the boys tell me 
about; the boys Saviour is my Saviotir. And in that 
faith the poor slave died. Surely the Lord accepted 
the soul which was thus brought to touch the hem of 
His garment, as it were, by a little child." 

After leaving Miss Whateley's school, Rollin began 
a conversation on foreign mission work, the young 
man saw the practical work done, and was so favor- 
ably impressed that he could not refrain from express- 
ing his feelings. 

Uncle Joseph was much pleased to see the interest 
manifested by Rollin, and commended him for it: 
"If we only could see," said he, "all the practical 
outcome of this foreign mission work, we would be 
astonished beyond measure. But now I think that 
we can spend a little time to great profit by consider- 
ing some of the modes and customs of this people. 

" It is not only in the grandeur and massiveness of 
their temples and palaces that the Egyptians astonish 
the modern traveler, but they have a claim scarcely 



Glass-blowing, 



53 



less strong- on our admiration for their excellence in 
some of the nicer and more elaborate and useful 
branches of art. In paintings executed in the reign 
of Osirtasen I., upwards of 3,500 years ago, we have 
representations of the art of glass-blowing as it was 
then practiced. The form of the bottle, the use of the 
blow-pipe, and the green of the fused material, cannot 
be mistaken, and glass ornaments and bottles have 
been found in the tombs. The Egyptians imitated, 
with a skill not surpassed, if equalled by the moderns, 
the amethyst, the emerald, and other precious stones, 
and formed necklaces of all the hues of the rainbow. 
Glass was used amongst them for bottles, vases, cups, 
ornaments, and even coffins, and they were fully ac- 
quainted with the art of glass-cutting. From them it 
is plain, as a matter of history, that the Israelites re- 
ceived instructions in the art of engraving precious 
stones, and an export trade from Egypt was carried 
on for many years of vessels of glass and porcelain. 

"The linen manufacture was also celebrated. Much 
linen was employed as an article of dress in their hot 
climate, and still more in the interment of the dead, and 
for export to foreign nations. The representations of 
the looms of Egypt on the tombs of Thebes are very 
simple and rude, and we are constrained to suppose 
that either they were improved upon in subsequent 
years, or that with these imperfect instruments they 
wrought, with much care, time, and labor, the manu- 
factured article which became so valuable and cele- 
brated. Some of the mummy cloths which are pre- 
served are of beautiful texture, and bespeak a high 
degree of excellence for those who manufactured them. 



54 



The Pilgrims, 



The finest kind resemble muslin, and are very thin 
and transparent. Some of them are fringed like silk 
shawls. Others have strong selvages, with stripes of 
blue, the dye of which has been determined to be in- 
digo. One specimen is covered with hieroglyphics, 
drawn with exceeding fineness. Gold and silver wire 
was used at a very early date in Egypt in weaving 
and embroidery. A passage in Pliny demonstrates 
their acquaintance with chemical laws and preparations 
necessary for dying. 'The singular thing,' he writes, 
' is, that though the bath contains only one color, sev- 
eral hues are imparted to the piece, these changes de- 
pending on the nature of the drug employed, nor can 
the color be afterwards washed off; and surely, if the 
bath had many colors in it, they must have presented 
a confused appearance on the cloth.' It is quite plain 
from this description, that before the dipping of the 
cloth it had been prepared, and it is only natural to 
infer hence that the Egyptians were acquainted with 
some of the facts and laws of modern chemistry." 

To this Rollin answered: " How very interesting the 
study of these subjects is, dear Uncle, I was just read- 
ing a short time ago of the papyrus, which has given us 
our modern name of paper. It grew in watery places, 
by the brooks and ponds of the Nile. It has large 
twisted roots and a triangular stem, fifteen or twenty 
feet in height. It is surmounted by a tuft of fine fibrous 
filaments, and these are again subdivided. The paper 
was obtained from the bark of the stem. This bark 
consists of plates, which, when unrolled, formed sheets, 
the inside ones being the best. The right of growing 
the papyrus and trading in it was a monopoly of the 



Papyrus. 



55 




government. It still grows at Cyane, near Syracuse, but 
no paper now manufactured from it is equal to the old 
Egyptian. It was not generally used in Egypt because 
of its high price, but pieces of broken pottery, of wood, 
stone, or leather, w r ere substituted for it by the poor. 
The use of paper made from papyrus was gradually 
superseded by parchment, and this again gave place 
to the modern, plentiful, and cheap article which is 
manufactured from cotton and linen rags. The sheets 
of paper made in Egypt were long 
and very narrow. Belzoni had a 
papyrus twenty-three feet in length, 
and one and a half in breadth. Rolls 
of this papyrus exist in an extraordin- 
ary state of preservation. Sometimes 
they are externally gilded, are found 
thrust into the breast or between the 
knees of the mummy, and occasion- 
ally are inclosed in wooden boxes or 
purses. Eighteen hundred papyri 
manuscripts were dug out of the ruins 
of Herculaneum alone, and are de- 
papyrus. posited in the Museum of Naples." 

"I am indeed glad to see that you have taken such 
an interest in these things," responded Uncle Joseph. 
''Perhaps you would like more of my observations?" 

"By all means, Uncle, I would never weary listen- 
ing," replied Rollin. 

"For our knowledge of Egyptian leather, and the 
modes of manufacturing and cutting it, we are indebted 
to the representations on the monuments, and to the 
few actual specimens which remain. These latter con- 



56 



The Pilgrims. 



bling the 
blade 



sist of straps across the bodies of mummies, some of 
which are beautifully embossed. Leather was em- 
ployed for sandals, shoes, seats of chairs and sofas, 
bow cases, and ornaments for the chariot. Bottles 
were made of skins, and shields were covered with 
leather. A man is seen dipping the skins to soak in 
water before removing the hair, and in another picture 
Egyptian curriers are engaged in cutting leather with 

a knife, in shape resem- 
semi-circular 
in use among 
modern curriers. Large 
quantities of skins were 
imported from foreign 
countries, and such 
things constituted no 
trifling item in the trib- 
ute presented from con- 
quered nations. Boats 
were made of wood, or 
the lighter kinds of 
osiers and rushes; the 
former for the transit 
of heavy goods, and 
the latter for pleasure, 
or smaller and lighter merchandise. Some boats 
were propelled by oars, and others had masts and 
sails. A man stood at the head of the boat with a 
pole in his hand to sound the depth of the water, to 
avoid the sand-banks in the river, which were chang- 
ing their places every season because of the inunda- 
tion. The larger boats had lofty and spacious cabins, 




WAICHMEX. ' 



2 fanners and Customs. 



57 



and pleasure boats were ornamented at the head and 
stern with the figure of a flower. The galleys, or ships 
of war, had a wooden bulwark for the defense of the 
rowers; archers were placed on the raised poop or 
forecastle, and a body of slingers in the tops. The 
sail was kept in action till the}" came near the enemy, 
when it was suddenly reefed, the rowers plied their 
oars, and the steersmen so enided the eallev as to 
strike, if possible, the vessel of the enemy on the side, 
so as to sink it by the shock, or afford opportunity for 
boarding-. The sails were 



richly painted, and orna- 
mented with various de- 
A'ices, and the edo-es of 
them were furnished with 
a strong border. 

''The Egyptians were 
thoroughly acquainted 
with the use of the pre- 
cious metals, and the man- 
ner of working them. 
They were famous for the 
preparation of alloys, 
and skilled in the beating and employment of gold 
leaf. Gilding was used for the temples and vessels 
of the gods, for vases, statues, coffins, and even for 
the dead bodies of their friends. Abraham, Ave are 
told, was rich in silver and gold, as well as in cattle. 
The balance for weighing the precious metals, all 
prices being decided by weight, was very delicately 
adjusted. It was such a balance which was used by 
Joseph's brethren in their purchase of corn. It had no 




EGYPTIAN POTTER. 



58 



The Pilgrims. 



scales, but a bar with a hook to it, to which the gold 
was suspended in bags. The most common metal in 
use was copper, which was hardened by an alloy of tin, 
so as to form bronze, and of this chisels and knives 
were made. 

"The style of art with the Egyptians was muck 
affected by the mode of drawing in use amongst them, 
and the dread of innovation, especially in connection 
with any of their religious subjects. Each artist was 
only permitted to imitate closely the works of his 

predecessors, and a human 
face or an eye was repre- 
sented in exactly the same 
manner from age to age. 
Statues were only allowed 
in certain postures of re- 
pose, which were most 
unfavorable for the devel- 
opment of art." 

"Uncle Joseph," said 
Rollin, "I am told that in 
the valleys on the side of the Nile are yet to be seen 
the quarries whence the ancient Egyptians derived 
materials for their massive buildings, and in the pictures, 
which have come down to us, we have some little in- 
formation as to the mode by which immense blocks, 
were transported for the same purpose." 

"Yes," replied Uncle Joseph, "the plan represented 
in the quarry at El Maasara is to place them on a 
sledge drawn by oxen on an inclined plane to the 
river. The stone was sometimes drawn by men who* 
were condemned to hard labor as a punishment. Be- 




EGYPTIAN COSTUMES. 



Manners and Customs. 



59 



yond a few pictures of this nature, we have no infor- 
mation as to the mechanical methods adopted in the 
removal and transport of the stones employed in the 
temples. Some of these were immensely large. The 
obelisks transported from Syene to Thebes are from 
seventy to ninety feet in length, and the one at Karnac 
weighs about two hundred and ninety-seven tons. 
These obelisks are small in comparison to the size and 
weight of the colossal statues. The colossi in the 
plain of Quorneh are reckoned to contain each eleven 
thousand five hundred cubic feet, and a statue at the 
Memnonium, or rather the 
Ramessium, weighs upwards 
of eight hundred and eighty- 
seven tons, and must have 
been brought one hundred and 
thirty-eight miles. There is 
also the temple mentioned by 
Herodotus, at Buto in the Del- 
ta, about which he says that 

it was brought from Elephantine, and that it was a 
monolith, one solid temple, and according to the most 
moderate calculation of the dimensions he gives of it, 
it is reckoned to have contained five thousand tons in 
weight. From these facts it appears almost certain 
that the Egyptians were in possession of mechanical 
knowledge to which the moderns have not yet attained, ; 
and although ours is the age of the railroad and the 
electric telegraph, the ancient wisdom of Egypt prob- 
ably embraced secrets which yet remain hidden from us. 

"The use and practice of medicine was well under- 
stood. Each branch of the medical profession was 




HEAD-DRESS. 



6o 



The Pilgrims, 



restricted to those who professed it. One took charge 
of diseases of the eye, another of those of the bowels, 
and another of those of the head. Doctors were paid 
by the State, and care was taken that their patients 
should not die under their hands from neglect or im- 
proper treatment. The majority of diseases was held 
to proceed from indigestion and excessive eating, and 
medical advice consisted principally in attention to 
diet and regimen. Physicians and drugs were numer- 
ous, and the reputation of Egyptian skill in the heal- 
ing art extended to foreign nations. When medicine 
failed, they had recourse to magic, 
dreams, and religious vows, and did 
not forget, on recovery, to present 
offerings at the shrines of the gods, 
often in ivory or precious metals, of 
the limbs which had been disabled or 
diseased. 

"As dress, the Egyptians, especially 
the lower order, wore a sort of apron 
or kilt about the loins, and some- 
times short drawers. Over these 
the higher classes cast a dress of linen, reaching- to 
the ankles, having large sleeves, and secured by a 
girdle. The princes had a badge at the side of the 
head descending to the shoulder, and ending in gold 
fringe. 

"The Egyptians shaved the head, and wore wigs of 
various sorts, and to have the hair of the head and 
the beard long- was a sign of carelessness and mourn- 
ing. The priests shaved the whole body every three 
days. In shaving the heads of young children, the 




HEAD-DRESS. 



Manners and Customs. 



61 




locks at the front, sides, and back were often left, and, 
according to Herodotus, the weight of hair cut off was 
given with an equal quantity of sil- 
ver to the temple of one of the 
gods. The sandals varied in form,, 
some being turned up at the end 
like our skates. They were made 
of papyrus stalks or palm leaves,, 
or of leather lined with cloth. The 
sandal. dresses of the women were the 

loose robe or skirt reaching to the ankles, and over 
this a petticoat fastened to a girdle; the petticoat was 
of great variety of pattern, according to 
the rank and taste of the wearer. Ladies 
wore their hair long and plaited, bound 
by an ornamental fillet. Rings, ear- 
rings, signets, armlets, anklets, bracelets, 
and necklaces, were plentiful, though 
there is no proof of the custom of the 
wedding-ring. The ladies wore combs, 
stained their eyelids and eyebrows, used 
pins and needles, and were fond of 
pretty round mirrors made of metal." 




62 



The Pilgrims, 



CHAPTER IV. 

Mission "Work — A Remarkable Conversion — Conquest of India — 
Horse Sale — Story Telling — Yatency — The Seven Beans — The 
Sultan's Treasures — The Ottoman Empire — Servian Prince — The 
Vizier. 



On the following day, as our pilgrims were walking 
about the city, Uncle Joseph remarked: "Dear Rollin, 
I have been thinking much of our visit yesterday to 
the missionary school, and of the practical outcome of 
these missionary operations. Let me give you an in- 
stance which occurred in this very city of Cairo. The 
story was told me by a most estimable gentleman, a 
native of Bethlehem, where our Saviour was born. 
Strictly schooled from his earliest years in the Moham- 
medan faith, he had his passage to heaven secured by 
the priest and purchased by his father at a price. He 
shows the precious document given him in token 
of this, as a relic of his deluded days. It is written 
in Arabic. But he attended the meetings of the 
American missionaries, at Jerusalem, and was con- 
verted to Christianity. 

"The history of his life would form a most thrilling 
narrative. While his conversion was a great grief to 
his mother, it was regarded by his father as a crime, 
for which he was imprisoned. He was severely pun- 
ished by the bastinado; that is, he was whipped on 
the soles of his bare feet, in the hope that he would 
recant. But • he had drank too deeply of the high 



Conquest of India. 63 



spirituality of the Word of God, in contrast with the 
sensuous rewards offered by the Koran, to be moved. 

"The Mohammedans think it no crime to kill a 
Christian dog, as they call a convert to Christianity; 
so his life was spared only on condition that he would 
leave his native land forever. Seeking protection 
of the American missionaries, he found it; and for a 
w r hile he was with the American consul at Jerusalem; 
here during the war he did good service to the Amer- 
ican flag, which protected him. Then, an exile from 
his native land, having forsaken all for Christ, he came 
into the land of Egypt, and in the city of Cairo he be- 
gan his labors in a little Christian mission school, for 
the education of girls. This school, required by the 
higher classes of Egyptians, threw its doors open wide 
to the poor of all classes, caring for their temporal 
as well as spiritual wants. One day as Mr. M. walked 
the streets of Cairo, he met a little girl who evidently 
belonged to the lowest caste. With his heart ever 
ready for his work, he approached the child, and asked 
her if she would not like to come to his school. She 
replied she would if her mother was willing. The 
mothers consent having been obtained, she became 
an inmate of the school; and here let me leave our 
little heroine, and consider a few facts in connection 
with the conquest of India by the English. 

"During that struggle many of the native kings and 
princes were deprived of their domain, while others 
were paid a fair equivalent for them. Among the 
latter was a certain king having an only son, who, at 
his father's death, inherited a princely fortune. Being 
quite young, he was sent to England to be educated. 



6 4 



The Pilgrims, 



Here, in the land of royalty, though bereft of his 
crown and sceptre, still a prince was he, and great 
care was bestowed upon his training. In course of 
time he became quite like an Englishman. At last 
there came a period in his life when he thought of 
taking a companion to share his heart and fortune. 
He could not but admire Britain's fair daughters; still 
he felt that none but a maid of Eastern lands could 
be a suitable wife for him. So, in the spirit of unrest, 
he traveled, and stopped at Cairo. There he visited 
the mission-school of which we have spoken. The 
prince was much interested in the instruction of these 
young girls; and as he witnessed their progress, it 
occurred to him that among these he might find a 
congenial spirit. He said this to my friend, Mr. M., 
who gave him a fair opportunity to make his choice. 
Now, as our hero looked upon these bright, happy 
girls, he felt that a difficult task was before him. Many 
of the faces were handsome, with flashing eyes and 
raven hair. But, knowing that more than beauty was 
necessary to happiness, he prolonged his search until 
his eyes fell upon a face not marked by beauty, but 
expressive of soul and purpose. This glance was 
sufficient, and held his heart captive. 

"I need not tell you that the girl who charmed the 
prince was none other than the little waif whom Mr. 
M. had picked up in the street, and offered a home 
and an education. 

"Mr. M. was the medium of communication, and to 
the prince's offer that in time she should become his- 
wife, her modest reply only proved the wisdom of his 
choice. She said: 'You are a prince of noble blood,, 



The King s Son. 



65 



and I a maid of lowest Egyptian caste. Though 
much improved by education, I am by birth unfit to 
accept your offer.' Disappointed and despondent, 
the prince returned to England, and struggled to for- 
get the little Egyptian girl who had won his heart. 
But it was all in vain. Occasionally he wrote to Mr. 
M., who, I have no doubt, as often spoke a good 
word for him. 

"Time passed on, and at the end of five years the 
prince again visited Cairo and the mission-schooL 
Impatiently he awaited the entrance of her whom he 
loved. If he was so enchanted with the school-girl, 
what must his feeling have been on beholding her now 
developed into a lovely, accomplished young woman? 
The meeting was mutually pleasant and cordial, and 
revived his hope; so, when opportunity offered, he, 
with his own lips, again asked her to be his, and, much 
to his happiness, she answered, 'Yes.' 

"In time they were married, and the prince returned 
to Eneland with his bride. Her home was all that 
love and money could make it; and yet, surrounded 
by every luxury, she never forgot her early life, and 
brightest among all her jewels flashed love and sym- 
pathy. Frequently in company they visited the mis- 
sion-school, and left substantial tokens of their inter- 
est. The aged mother was brought from Egypt to 
spend her remaining years in London. The distressed 
and needy of the great metropolis were blessed with 
the notice and charity of the happy wife. 

" Her old teacher, Mr. M., afterwards came to Amer- 
ica, where he met with great reverses. At the time 
of relating this story to me, he was becoming blind. 
5 



66 



The Pilgrims, 



He stood in need of aid and sympathy. At its con- 
clusion I remarked: 'Why do you not write to your 
protege? I know that she would be only too glad to 
repay the debt of love and gratitude she owes you.' 
Immediately he proceeded to act on the suggestion. 
Soon after this I left New York, and never learned 
the result of the letter. But let us hope that the lov- 
ing hand that so strangely grouped these three drew 
her to a knowledge of his condition, and threw open 
wide the portals of her heart with the sweet assurance, 
'Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least 
of these, my brethren, ye have done it unto me.'" 

Rollin was much interested in this story, and for a 
long way in their walk he meditated, neither of them 
speaking a word. Their meditations were now brought 
to a close by coming upon an excited crowd of people. 
A gentleman was buying a horse for a company of 
travelers. The owner of the horse was a strapping 
fellow, about thirty years of age. He was attired in 
the Turkish costume, consisting of a short jacket, blue 
vest embroidered and covered with bell buttons, baggy 
breeches, yellow sash, goat-skin boots, and red cap; 
his hair was short, face dark, with bright gleaming 
eyes, and a fierce mustache — he was above the medium 
height, and, withal, a pleasant looking fellow. 

"Now, my son," said the leader of the company, 
"how much do you ask for the horse?" 

Making a salam, the Turk answered : " Master, if thy 
servant hath found favor in thine eyes, thou shalt have 
the horse for two hundred sequins." 

"Oh, Father of the faithful, hear the thief!" shouted 
an old man. "Two hundred sequins for the brute, 



Horse Sale. 



6 7 



when I will sell my beautiful beast for one hun- 
dred." 

"You ask too much, my son," said the leader. 

"Thou seest, O Frangistini, that my horse is swift 
as an arrow from the bow, and that he soringeth like 
a jackal. See his loins; they are in strength as the 
lion." 

"I see all these things, O child of the faithful, but 
yet thou askest too much." 

" Well, please God, thou wilt buy him for one 
hundred and fifty sequins." 

"Now, may dogs defile thy grave, thou robber!" 
shouted a man who sported a blue galadine and yel- 
low slippers, "wouldst thou cheat the stranger within 
our gates, when for eighty sequins he can buy my 
beast, the pride of Bassara, instead of mounting thy 
old camel, which is fit for nothing but lepers to ride?" 

"I will count down in thine hand twenty sequins 
with the Sultana of Frangistan thereon for thy horse," 
said the leader. 

" What has thy servant done to thee, O master, 
that thou shouldst thus revile him? Say eighty, and 
we shall rejoice." 

"No; I will give thee twenty." 

" Fifty sequins, and he is thine." 

"No." 

" He is of the children of Araby; but thou mayest 
have him for forty." 

"Twenty, or we shall depart in peace." 
" In Allah's name, say thirty." 
"No." 

" Well, thou shalt have him for twenty; but be kind 



68 



The Pilgrims, 



to Selim, for he is a good horse, and does not love to 
be beaten." 

Leaving this scene, our pilgrims walked on toward 
their lodging place, and on the way they passed a 
cafe, or coffee-house; here their attention was 
attracted to quite a crowd of men sitting around 
smoking their pipes and sipping their coffee, and 
listening to a romancer, or story-teller, who was dra- 
matically acting the scenes he was relating. Rollin 
was anxious to go near to hear and see what was 
going on, but Uncle Joseph said that they did not 
have time now; but he kindly told Rollin about these 
story-tellers of the East. He said: "They receive a 
trifling sum of money from the keeper of the coffee- 
house, because they attract attention and customers, 
and the listeners also generally give them some fur- 
ther reward; the stories are mostly of an absurd char- 
acter, — I will give you one oi them: 

"The Seven Beans." 

"The story was: In Cairo lived a poor Arab and 
his wife. His name was Ben Sel'goim. They were 
very poor, and one day when they had no money and 
no food, Ben's wife, Fatima, said to him, 'Take a book, 
an ink-stand, and a pen; go to the bazaar, and sit 
down gravely in a corner, but where you can be seen 
by all. Everybody will think you a wise man, a 
learned sheik, and will ask your advice.' 

" ' But I have not even a tarbooch to cover my head,' 
replied Ben. 

"His wife directly took hold of ^yateney, or pump- 
kin, which she cut in two, and stuck upon his head., 



The Seven Beans. 



6 9 



This gave him a very solemn aspect indeed. A waggish 
neighbor even called him Sheik Yateney, which, trans- 
lated, is Father Pumpkin. 

"Arrived at the baeaar, he settled himself down in a 
corner near the entrance. Some time after, a peasant 
rushed into the bazaar, and seeing the Sheik, he said: 
* Master, I have lost my donkey. You are a learned 
man; can you tell me where it is?' 

"Now Ben did not know what to say, so he said at 
random : 

"'Go to the cemetery, and you will find your don- 
key.' 

"It happened that the man found his donkey in the 
place indicated, and he returned to the bazaar and 
gave Sheik Yateney a piece of money. 

"Yateney went home in the evening quite delighted, 
and thanked his wife for her good counsel. Next 
day, full of doubt, he returned to his post; but the 
answers he gave to questions all turned out to be right. 

"But vain are the calculations of man! The Pasha 
of the province had lost his treasure. Having heard 
of Yateney's skill, the latter, under pain of losing his 
head, was to recover the treasure in seven days. 
Yateney went home, dashed his pumpkin on the 
ground, and heaped ashes on his bare pate. 

" 'What is the matter? ' gently asked his wife. 

"'Out of my sight, thou vulture, ghoul. In seven 
days I shall have my head cut off.' 

"Then solemnly he took from a bag seven beans — 
one for each day he had to live — and after bewailing 
his fate all day, in the evening he swallowed one, say- 
ing, as he did so, 'There goes one! ' 



7o 



The Pilgrims. 



" It happened that at that moment one of the band 
of robbers was passing by. Thinking the wise man 
had found him out, he ran and told his companions.. 
It was decided in council that another of their number 
should go the following evening. About dark he did 
so. The unfortunate Yateney, sitting at his window, 
just then swallowed another bean, exclaiming: 'There 
goes a second ! ' 

" Terrified, the thief fled, and told his companions. 
They decided another should go on the third day, and 
so on, until the whole party had tried if Yateney, as 
they supposed, knew them. 

"Just the same happened, and so frightened were 
the robbers, that they all came to the Sheik, implored 
mercy, and gave up the treasure. 

"Gravely, Yateney answered them that he knew all 
the time they were the guilty Ones, but he had 
determined to try what conscience would do. 

"Yateney went to the Pasha and told him to send 
his servants for the recovered treasure. Yateney 
received a handsome present. He was thankful, but 
all the same he determined to eo no more to the 
bazaar. 

"But Yateney was not to rest. 

"The treasure of diamonds and precious stones of 
the Sultan had been robbed, and from Constantinople 
the news spread all over the Sultan's dominions. 
Word was sent that Yateney was the man to find the 
treasure, and he w r as called to Stamboul. He was as 
a mad-man when he heard it, but was obliged to go* 
with the janizaries. He, lamenting his fate, drew to> 
the shore, his heart quite failing him. 



The Sultans Treasures. 



7i 



"On landing, to gain one more day of life, he bade 
the janizaries go forward and tell the Sultan of his 
arrival. He then set up his tent on the shore, and 
was alone with his wife. 

"The reputation of Sheik Yateney had spread all 
through Stamboul. All the robbers in the city trem- 
bled, lest they should be discovered. Those who had 
taken the jewels, to wait a better time for embarking, 
had buried the treasure in the sand of the shore. 
Yateney had pitched his tent on the very spot. 

"Believing that Yateney had discovered them, they 
rushed to him, imploring him not to denounce them 
to the police. Yateney made the same reply he had 
made to the thieves of Cairo. 

"When next day the messenger came from the Sul- 
tan, Yateney said, 'It is for the Sultan to come to me; 
the treasure is here.' 

" The Sultan came with all his court; and the treasure 
was dug up; but Yateney disclosed not the authors of 
the robbery. Delighted at recovering the treasure, 
he loaded Yateney with presents and rewards, and 
kept him about his person. But Yateney was not 
happy. Pestered with questions, he sighed for home 
and obscurity. 

"One -day he was at the baths with the Sultan. 
Thought he: 'If I gave the Sultan a box on the ear, 
he would think me mad, and send me home.' Fired 
with the idea, he struck the Sultan, and rushed from 
the room. Full of rage, the Sultan followed; but 
scarcely had he crossed the threshold, when down 
came the whole building. 

"The Sultan, believing that Yateney, by his presence 



72 



The Pilgrims. 



of mind, had saved his life, promised to grant him 
any favor asked. 

" 'But one thing I ask,' said Yateney. ' Oh, father of 
believers, publish throughout your kingdom that no 
one may ask me another question.' 

"Then Yateney told the Sultan his whole history, 
who, more than ever believing in Yateney's inspira- 
tion, loaded him with presents, and sent him back to 
his country, where he ever after regarded his wife as 
the author of his fortune, and advised all young men 
to think much of their wives' counsels." 

Being yet some distance from their lodging place, 
and walking leisurely along the street, Uncle Joseph 
remarked: " Rollin, have you learned the origin of the 
Ottoman Empire?" 

"Why no, Uncle," replied Rollin, "I would be ever 
so much pleased to have its history just now, whilst 
in the country so controlled by Turkish power." 

Uncle Joseph began: "Many centuries before the 
birth of Christ, there lived in Mongolia, to the north- 
west of China, a wild and savage people, called the 
Hionor-nu, beloneino- to the Mongol race. They were 
very war-like, and carried on fierce wars with the 
Chinese. Some of them wandered westward, and 
settled in the western part of Asia, and their great 
descendant, Ottoman, was the founder of the mighty 
Ottoman Empire. After many conquests in Asia, Or- 
chan, the son of Ottoman, passed over into Europe, and 
settled in Turkey. But you must remember that the 
ruling classes there do not like to hear themselves 
called Turks, but Osmanli; and call their dominions 
the Ottoman Empire, from Ottoman, its great founder; 



The Ottoman Empire. 



73 



the word 'Toork' being only used by them in speak- 
ing of the wandering tribes of Turkmans or Turco- 
mans. For a long time the Osmanli were supposed 
to belong to the Caucasian race, and perhaps they 
would not much like to be reminded of those savage 
ancestors of theirs, who dwelt in the barren Mon- 
golian land so many years ago. 

"But to return to Ottoman. His father, or the son, 
was one of those Turkish chiefs whose ancestors came 
from Mongolia and settled in Western Asia, and when 
Jelaladdin, Sultan of Tharasm, was defeated by the 
more modern Mongols about the middle of the thir- 
teenth century, Orthogrue, who, with his tribe, had 
served under him, settled on the banks of the river 
Sangar. And now began war and bloodshed with a 
vengeance. For when Ottoman succeeded his father, 
he had no idea of giving himself up to the peaceful 
life of a shepherd, after the fashion of his tribe when 
not engaged in war; but, girding on his weapons, he 
set forth to fight and conquer. His son, Orchan, fol- 
lowed in his footsteps. City after city was captured, 
the Greek Emperor, Andronicus, vanquished, and the 
whole country of Bittynia, as far as the shores of the 
Bosphorus, completely subdued. Prusa, the modern 
Bowsa, or Broussa, was converted into a Moslem 
city, with mosque, college, and hospital. A regular 
army was organized, in which the young citizens and 
peasantry were compelled to serve, and the Ottoman 
Empire was fairly begun. 

" But Orchan could not stop there. As he stood up- 
on the high banks of the foaming Bosphorus, he 
longed to be master of the regions beyond; and, 



74 



The Pilgrims. 



calling his troops together, he passed over into Europe,. 
A. D. 1 34 1. The Greeks, who were quarreling among- 
themselves, were in no fit state to resist their power- 
ful enemy, and the Emperor, Cantacuzenus, tried to 
make friends with Orchan, and gave him his daughter 
Theodora in marriage. But it w r ould take too long 
were I to tell you all that Orchan did during his life. 
He died of grief at the loss of his son Suliman, who 
was killed by a fall from his horse while practicing the 
'jereed.' Under Amurath, who succeeded his father 
in 1360, the tide of conquest flowed onward, for he 
conquered Roumania, and made Adrianople (built by 
the Roman Emperor, Adrian), his capital; and before 
long the fields and valleys of Bulgaria, and the colder 
regions of Servia and Bosnia, fell under the Ottoman 
sway. It was in the great battle of Rossover that 
the Servian prince and his principal nobles were 
killed. After the battle, Amurath, accompanied by 
his vizier, went over the field, and as he gazed on the 
upturned faces of the dead around him, he could not 
help remarking how young they looked. 

"'Yes,' said the vizier, 'had they been older they 
would have been wiser than to oppose your arms!' 

" At that very moment a Servian soldier started from 
amongst the dead and plunged his dagger into the 
conqueror. The wound was mortal, and Amurath's. 
career of victory was at an end." 



Roida. 



75 



CHAPTER V. 

Roida — The Nilometer — Place where Vases were found — The 
Nile — The Khalij Canal — Pyramids — Their Magnitude — Their 
Use — Climbing the Pyramids — On Top — The Sphinx — The 
Ovens — A Wedding — A Bargain — -Their Camels — The Journey — 
The Bedouin Caravans — El Arish — Over the Desert — Gaza. 



Our Pilgrims left Cairo on the following day, for 
the purpose of visiting the Pyramids. They crossed 
the Nile to a small island named Roida, or Rhoddah, 
near to old Cairo, where there is a column called 
the Nilometer, used for measuring the height of the 
river; it consists of a square well or chamber, in the 
centre of which is a graduated pillar, divided into 
cubits of about twenty-two inches each. Uncle Joseph 
remarked that "a Nilometer existed at Memphis in the 
times of the Pharaohs, and durino- the reigns of the 

<_> o 

Ptolemies there was one in Ilithyia, and another at 
Elephantine in the reigns of the early Roman Emper- 
ors. The one at Rhoddah is attributed to the Caliph 
Amin, who reigned from 809 to 833. During the in- 
undation four criers proclaim every morning the height 
to which the water has risen. When it has reached 
eighteen cubits, the canals are opened, and it is allowed 
to flow over the land. 

"This is the place, according to tradition, where 
Moses was found in his little boat of bulrushes. The 
island, as you see, is covered with trees, and is at a 



7 6 



The Pilgrims. 



sufficient distance from the old city for all the purposes 
of privacy, and since bathing was at that time not a 
mere washing or refreshing process, but an act of 
devotion, for which the prince must have had a certain 
place appointed: perhaps none could be found more 
likely than the one in question, therefore I feel quite 
ready to believe that we are standing near where that 
affecting and extraordinary circumstance took place." 

Rollin could not express the feelings of his heart as 
he stood on this historic ground, and he sat gazing in 
silence upon the waters of the Nile, lost in thought. 
Uncle Joseph looked upon his nephew with feelings of 
admiration, and then continued: "The annual overflow 
is the most important thing in all Egypt. It is actually 
a matter of life or death to the inhabitants. In the 
old mythology, the Nile was personified into a god, 
and sacrifices were offered to him to secure an over- 
flow sufficient to give an abundant harvest. 

"The Nile, represented as a god in the old temples 
of Egypt, is a fine old man with a white beard, the 
statue, usually of black marble, probably to indicate 
his Abyssinian origin, his head crowned with emblem- 
atical fertility. He was supported by a sphinx, and 
a crocodile and a hippopotamus reposed at his feet. 
He was surrounded by sixteen sons, representing the 
sixteen cubits to which it was necessary the waters 
should rise, in order to give their full share of fertility 
to Egypt. He is no longer worshiped as a god, but his 
waters are treasured as carefully as ever, and the 
annual inundation is watched and measured as anx- 
iously as it was when the young girl, in her bridal 
attire, was thrown into it to propitiate old Father Nilus." 



The Inundations. 



77 



Our travelers discovered that the Nile is navigated, 
by small steamers and boats of all kinds, from Alexan- 
dria up as far as the first cataract. Between Alexan- 
dria and Cairo the Rosetta branch is 1,800 feet wide, 
and has, in the dry season, a depth of about five feet. 
The Damietta branch is 900 feet wide, and its depth, 
when the river is lowest, is about eight feet. In the 
ordinary state of its waters, the Nile has not depth 
sufficient for vessels of more than sixty tons burden; 
but during the height ot the inundation, the depth of 
water is forty feet, and large vessels can ascend to 
Cairo. The river begins to rise as early as April in 
its upper branches, but not until the latter part of June 
in Egypt, where it reaches its greatest height between 
September 20th and 30th, when it is usually at Cairo 
twenty-four feet above the low-water level, and at 
Thebes thirty-six feet. About the middle of October 
it begins to fall, and in Egypt it is lowest in the middle 
of May. The rise sometimes reaches thirty feet, and 
the overflow then does great damage; on the other 
hand, when it falls short of eighteen feet, the harvests 
fail, and Egypt experiences a famine. Of the sixty- 
six inundations between 1735 and 1801, eleven were 
very high, thirty good, sixteen feeble, and nine insuf- 
ficient. The water of the river is charged with mud, 
which it deposits over the cultivated land of Egypt to 
an average depth of not more than the twentieth part: 
of an inch each year. Notwithstanding its turbidness, 
the water is sweet and wholesome, and is freely drank 
by the people, among whom the saying is proverbial, 
that he who has drank of the Nile will always long to 
return and drink of it again. 



The Pilgrims. 



The next point of interest was a visit to the Khalig 
canal, which o-ets its water from the Xile, in the im- 

o 

mediate vicinity of Cairo, and spreads the fertilizing 
stream throughout the western delta, as far as Damietta. 
Uncle Joseph said: "Egypt used annually to wed the 
Xile. by throwing into its turbulent and turbid waters, 
when rushino- with force into this Khalig canal, a voung- 
and beautiful virgin. This poor girl, of fourteen or 
fifteen, chosen for her perfection of grace and form, 
was decorated as a bride — richly, elaborately decora- 
ted — and at the moment when the rising waters of the 
Xile were let into the Khalig canal, to give life and 
fertility to well-nigh half of the delta, this poor girl, 
torn from her friends and family for the purpose, was 
thrown into the water, boiling, foaming, rushing- madlv 
in waves from the overflowing river into the dry bed 
of the canal. The Xile was her bridegroom, and his 
embrace was death. 

"The Feast of Khalig-, which now annuallv takes 

o J 

place, as it did in days of yore, when the waters of the 
overflowing river are let tumultuouslv into the drv bed 
of the Khalig canal, usuallv in August, is the modern 
reproduction of the old horrible ceremony, in which 
the shrieking girl, in her bridal attire, was offered up 
as a sacrifice to old Father Xile. The difference is, 
that an earthen image of a girl, the best that the artists 
of Egypt can construct, is now substituted for the liv- 
ing, shuddering-, shrieking- victim that was formerlv 
thrown in. And for this change, from cruel barbarism 
to merciful symbolism. Egypt is indebted to her Mus- 
selman conquerors. Egypt is said to have continued 
the horrid custom that had descended from antiquity, 



The Feast of Khalig. 



79 



until Amrow, the general of the Caliph Omar, in the 
seventh century, put an end to it. The Nile did not 
rise as high as usual next year, and Amrow wrote in 
great anxiety to Omar, fearing a revolt if the old and 
horrid custom were not restored. Omar inclosed in 
his dispatch a solemn form of invocation to the one 
true God, drawn out by his high-priest, and he ordered 
Amrow to throw that invocation into the Nile, instead 




ARAB WARRIOR., 



of the girl, as of yore. Amrow did so, and the waters 
that year rose to the usual level. Gradually, however, 
the old feast was restored, all except the human 
sacrifice, for which the earthen figure was substituted, 
and this now constitutes the Feast of Khalig. 

"That barrier keeps the waters of the river from the 
bed of the canal until the stream has sufficiently risen 
to permit of its being divided, and the cutting of the 
bund, or barrier, with its attendant ceremonies, consti- 



So 



The Pilgrims. 



tutes the Feast of Khalig. It is in itself a sufficiently 
important matter, for the irrigation and fertilization of 
nearly half the delta depends upon it, and it is therefore 
no wonder that it should be made a time of holiday- 
making and rejoicing. 

"From the time of the approach of evening, an 
hour or two before sunset, the crowd begins to accum- 
ulate in the neighborhood of this bund, or dam. The 
assembled Arabs sing and play on musical instruments, 
and shout and dance. The poor come in crowds out 
from Cairo on foot, and the rich in their comfortable 
boats. The whole river is alive with boats of all kinds, 
and as the twilight deepens into night, thousands of 
lights illumine its waters; whilst fireworks are let off in 
Cairo, illuminations appear on the surrounding build- 
ings, nay, even the very huts are lighted up. Musi- 
cians and singers and dancing girls swarm on the bar- 
rier itself, and little booths and pavilions are dotted 
all over these banks, as well of the river as of the 
canal. Shouts of laughter resound on the water as 
well as on the shore, and are heard every now and 
then, loud and dissonant, above the din of the music 
a.nd the singing. 

"The torches, waving amongst the crowds on shore, 
and the lights in the booths, and the gleaming lamps on 
the river, the water of which reflects on its black bosom 
the twinkling dots of flame, and the laughter, and the 
singing, and the discordant music, and the shouting 
crowds in their holiday attire, all make up as strange 
and fantastical a scene as one could see anywhere. 
The feast continues all night. Bengal lights and rock- 
ets, and blue, red and green flames, and flashing fire- 



The Bride of the Nile. 



81 



works, are let off at intervals in Cairo all the night, and 
as they appear and die away again, the crowds shout 
and dance, and exhibit the wildest demonstrations of joy. 

" At length, at daydawn, the barrier is cleared, and 
the troops appear in military order, with the Viceroy 
himself, or his representative, at their head. The 
cannon are placed in position, and the earthen image 
of the bride of the Nile is elevated, and great is the 
excitement. All are waiting for the decisive moment. 
It comes at last! The signal is given, the cannon 
thunder forth, the image of the girl hurled into the 
seething waters, the barrier is broken up, and large, 
and ever more large, is the volume of water that 
rushes, and leaps, and crashes, and dances into the 
bed of the canal, as the last opposing remnants of the 
barrier are swept away by the impetuous tide." 

It was now in the month of December, and as our 
Pilgrims journeyed to Gizeh, they could not fail to be 
struck with the amazing difference displayed by the 
country around them, to that of their own Pennsylva- 
nia home, in the same season. The pastures were 
luxuriant; the beans, in full flower, filled the air with 
fragrance; and they saw shepherds feeding numerous 
flocks, as the children of Israel had done on the same 
spot many centuries before. 

They passed the night in the open air in preference 
to entering a mud hut, and encountering hosts of 
vermin. On rising the next morning, they found that 
a short ride would take them to the great Pyramid, 
and a number of wretched inhabitants crowded around 
them to offer their services as guides, although they 
had arrived under the escort of a proper conductor. 
6 



The Pyramids, 



83 



Rollin had heard much of the Pyramids, and had 
raised high imaginations; yet, when he actually arrived 
at the base of the great Pyramids, he was so aston- 
ished that he could not give utterance to his thoughts; 
the effect at a distance, though grand and imposing, 
had somewhat disappointed him, but the mighty moun- 
tain of stone, chiseled and raised by the hand of man, 
when closely viewed in its stupendous magnitude, and 
compared with the feeble creatures creeping round its 
base, operated in the most astounding manner on his 
mind, and it was sometime before he had the power 
of expressing his feelings. When his astonishment 
had somewhat passed away, he inquired an explanation 
of the Pyramids from Uncle Joseph. 

Uncle Joseph replied: "This Pyramid is 480 feet 9 
inches high, and its base is 464 feet square; it is built 
upon the solid rock, which was dug out and smoothed 
off to fit it for the foundation. There is a chamber 
46 by 24 feet, and 1 1 feet 6 inches high, hewn out of 
the solid rock, which was intended as the sepulchre of 
Cheops, mentioned by Herodotus, which is reached 
by a passage 220 feet long. There is also a second 
chamber constructed in the masonry of the Pyramid, 
17 feet by 18 feet 9 inches, and 20 feet 3 inches high; 
this is called the queen's chamber, and occupies a 
position nearly in the centre of the Pyramid. 

"It appears that the lower chamber was found to 
be impracticable for the purpose intended, and as the 
king lived so long, another chamber was constructed 
by prolonging an ascending passage from the queen's 
chamber for 1 50 feet farther into the very centre of the 
Pyramid, and after a short horizontal passage, making 



8 4 



The Pilgrims. 



a room 17 feet 1 inch, by 34 feet 3 inches, and 14 feet 
1 inch high. The end of this passage was finished in 
fine style, and cased with red Symitic granite; and in 
the king's chamber was placed a granite sarcophagus 
for the king, 7 feet 6^ inches long, 3 feet 3 inches 
broad, and 3 feet 5 inches high. Two small air chan- 
nels or chimneys, about 9 inches square, were made, 
ascending to the north and south sides of the Pyramid, 
which perfectly ventilated this chamber. 

" After the body of the king had been placed in 
this chamber, the entrance was closed with granite 
portcullises, and a well made at the junction of the 
upward inclined and horizontal passages, by which 
the workmen descended and came out, after securely 
closing all access to the chamber. 

" These Pyramids are made of the very largest 
stones, which are of extraordinary dimensions, and 
their transportation to the Pyramids and adjustment 
in their places indicate a surprising degree of mechan- 
ical skill. Their thickness varies from more than four 
to less than two feet. Those near the top are of 
thicker stones, but the blocks are of moderate length 
compared with those near the base. These huge 
blocks of stone, sometimes weighing 1,600 tons each, 
were dragged for hundreds of miles on sledges. In 
one case, 2,000 men were employed three years in 
bringing a single stone from the quarry to the struct- 
ure in which it was to be placed. 

"This, the greatest pyramid, covers an area of 556,- 
515 square feet at its base. When completed it em- 
braced 6,848,000 tons of masonry. According to Xen- 
ophon, 100,000, and according to Diodorus, 360,000 



Climbing the Pyramids. 



85 



persons labored without intermission for ten years, 
only to prepare the means for transporting the huge 
blocks of stones, and twenty years more with the 
erection of the Pyramid. And what was the reward 
of these poor laborers? There is no reasonable doubt 
that they were compelled to the performance of this 
slavish work. And who could estimate or describe 
the suffering and sacrifice of human life which it cost 
to rear these colossal monuments of the vanity and 
•selfishness of unscrupulous tyrants? And, further, 
what benefit have these monuments of stone ever 
been to humanity, or what benefit can they ever be? 
What want can they meet, or what gap can they fill? 

" To quarry and move the immense blocks to the 
Pyramids, and there raise them to their places, required 
no little engineering skill. Near the summits the 
number of men that could aid in raising the huge 
stones, must have been comparatively small for want 
of room, and it seems that some mechanical power 
must have been employed besides any which we know 
they possessed." 

After this description, Rollin was very anxious to 
explore the caverns or chambers. But Uncle Joseph 
said that they would not have the time, as they wished 
to visit other places of importance. They, however, 
•decided to ascend this Pyramid. With the guides in 
advance, they rapidly ascended the first terraces, each 
about three feet in height, the guides leading the 
travelers each by the hand, and thus drawing them 
upwards. At the first halt for taking breath, a third 
Arab suddenly and unexpectedly crept forth, as it 
would seem, out of the solid wall, and, without further 



86 The Pilgrims. 

ceremony, began to rub the legs of Uncle Joseph- 
remarking, meanwhile, that he was a " doctor," and 
that his business was to take care of his health, and,, 




CLIMBING PYRAMIDS. 



particularly, to see to it that he suffered no harm in. 
his legs. All assurances on Uncle Joseph's part that, 
he was well and strong, and had a good pair of legs, 



On Top of the Pyramids. 



87 



availed nothing; the "doctor" stayed with them and 
rubbed his legs again and again. In fifteen to twenty 
minutes' time they reached the top, and here the 
" doctor" was promptly at hand with his little bill, and 
was rewarded according to his services. 

A prospect, such as our pilgrims had never seen 
before, was in view; the works of God and man — of 
nature and art — blending into a panorama of inde- 
scribable grandeur. Toward the West lay the awful 
Lybian desert, stretching far out beyond the reach of 
human eye; to the East the Valley of the Nile, clothed 
in verdure and teeming with life, and through its cen- 
tre ran the historical river Nile, like a silver ribbon; 
on its right shore the great city of Cairo, with its 
mosques and minarets; close by, to the south-east, 
were the pyramids of Kephern and Menkara, and 
further on those of Abusir, Sakkara and Dathion; and 
how could they restrain their thoughts from the 
history which has taken its slow march past these 
monuments of ancient times? Abraham, Jacob, Joseph 
and Moses saw these pyramids, most probably them- 
selves stood on this very height and looked over the 
enchanting landscape. To think on these, and many 
other things, made Rollin feel that the sublimest 
moment of his life had come. 

The travelers did not visit the other Pyramids, but 
Uncle Joseph gave Rollin a description of them. He 
said: "The Pyramid standing upon the higher ele- 
vation is next in size to this; it was built by Suphis 
II., who reigned 66 years. It has two sepulchral 
chambers. The masonry is inferior to this, but it was 
anciently cased below with red granite. 



88 



The Pilgrims, 



"The third Pyramid was built by Menkara, who 
reigned 63 years; this is smaller than either of the 
other two, being only 218 feet high, and 354 feet 6 
inches square. It has also two sepulchral chambers, 
both in the solid rock. 

"There are six other Pyramids of inferior size, as 
you can see, in this neighborhood. There is one at 
Abou Rouash, five miles to the north-west; another 
at Zowyet, another at Reegah. There are five at 



Asychis. Others are at Megdum and Illahoon, and 
two at Biahmo, apparently the sepulchres of the last 
kings of the twelfth dynasty. Some small brick pyra- 
mids of the kings of the eleventh dynasty are at the 
Drah Abuo Negger at Thebes. In fact, this is a land 
of Pyramids." 

They next visited the Sphinx, which had been, 
through the exertions of Belzoni and others, laid open, 
by digging away the sand. 

Uncle Joseph explained that "the sphinx was a 
fabulous monster of Greek mythology, generally rep- 




Abooseer. A 
group of eleven 
at Sakkara, one 
with a doorway 
inlaid with porce- 
lain tiles, and hav- 
ing a royal name. 
Five more at 



INSIDE OF THE PYRAMID. 



g Dashour, one 
H built of brick, 
supposed to be 
that of the king 



The Sphinx, 



8 9 



resented as having the winged body of a lion, and the 
breast and head of a woman. In the legends of the 
poets, the sphinx is said to have been the daughter 
of Orthus and Chimasra, or of Typhon and Chimaera, 
or of Typhon and Echidna, and to have come from the 
most distant parts of Ethiopia. She is also said to have 
been sent by Mars to avenge the death of his son, the 
Dragon, slain by Cadmus; or, according to others, 
sent by Bacchus or Pluto; while others again repre- 
sent her as one of the women who, with the daughters 
of Cadmus, were thrown into madness and metamor- 
phosed into monsters. She was ravaging Thebes, and 
devouring those who could not solve a riddle which 
she proposed to all whom she met, when QEdipus, be- 
ing offered the crown of Thebes on condition of de- 
livering the country from the monster, solved the 
riddle, upon which the Sphinx destroyed herself. 

"It is probable that the Greeks derived the idea of 
the sphinx from Egypt, where, from remote antiquity, 
such figures had been used to embellish the avenues 
which formed the approaches to temples. Among the 
Egyptians, the sphinx had the head of a man, bearded 
and capped, and the body of a lion, thus differing from 
the Greek sphinxes, which had the head of a woman 
and the body of a lion. Clemens and Plutarch say 
they were placed before temples as types of the mys- 
terious nature of the deity. 

"Some sphinxes have the head of a ram, and are 
called crio-sphinxes ; others, the head of a hawk, and 
are called hieraco- sphinxes ; the former were sacred to 
Amen, or Jupiter- Ammon, the latter to Ra, the god 
of the sun. 



go 



The Pilgrims. 



"This great sphinx at the pyramids was supposed 
by Lepsius to represent king Cephren, the builder of 
the second pyramid; but one of these inscriptions that 
you see was but lately discovered, and its interpreta- 
tion renders it probable that it was sculptured even 
before the time of Cheops, the builder of the first 
pyramid. The Egyptians called it Hor-em-khu, or 
Har-ma-khii, 'the setting sun,' the name of the god 
to whom it was dedicated which was converted by 




the Greeks into Armachis. It is on the eastern edge 
of the platform on which the pyramids stand, as you 
see, with its head turned toward the Nile." 

Our pilgrims now took out their measuring line, 
and found that the head measured 28 feet 6 inches 
from the top to the chin. The total length of the 
body, which is that of a lion crouching close to the 
ground, is 146 feet. Across the shoulders it measured 
36 feet, and the paws are extended about 50 feet. 



Chicken Hatching. 



9i 



Between the paws was built a small temple, which was 
of masonry, as were also the paws, while the rest of 
the sphinx was carved out of one solid piece of rock. 

Near this great figure was discovered a vast temple 
buried in the sand, which was supposed to have been 
dedicated to the worship of the divinity of the sphinx. 

They found the countenance so mutilated that the 
outline of the features could only be traced with great 
difficulty. The head had been covered with a cap, the 
lower part of which remains; and it had originally a 
beard, the fragments of which were found below. 
Immediately under the breast stood a granite tablet, 
and another of limestone on either side, resting- aeainst 
the paws. The first contains a representation of 
Thothmes IV. offering incense and making libation to 
the sphinx, with a long inscription in hieroglyphics 
reciting the titles of the king. On the paws are in- 
scriptions of the Roman times, expressive of adoration 
to the Sphinx, or to the Egyptian deities. 

Having satisfied themselves with the sights of the 
day, our pilgrims returned to Cairo, where they in- 
spected the ovens used there for hatching chickens, 
which is carried on to a great extent in several places; 
they are built under ground, in two rooms, fronting 
each other, With a narrow passage between them, and 
are three or four feet in height, with holes at the top, 
which are shut or opened as the heat may require to 
be increased or diminished; they are warmed with a 
smouldering; fire for ten days, when the eees are shifted 
and turned daily; a very slow fire is kept up, and. on 
the twenty-second day, the chickens break their shells, 
and form a most extraordinary and amusing sight. 



92 



The Pilgrims, 



As they returned from examining the ovens, they 
were so fortunate as to meet a wedding procession, at 
which Rollin could not forbear laughing, as the gen- 
eral effect was very ludicrous; the bride, a mere girl, 
was conducted under a paltry canopy, veiled com- 
pletely, yet adorned with tawdry trappings; on each 
side two corpulent women walked by her; they were 
preceded by a band of poor musicians, and followed 
by a multitude of friends and strangers. Rollin said: 
"Uncle Joseph, it seems to me everywhere in this 
country that woman is considered a creature far in- 
ferior to man; her judgment, feelings, and wishes are 
never consulted, and even in cases where she is treated 
with any distinction, it is on account of her relation- 
ship to a man by marriage, never from a sense of in- 
dividual merit." 

"Yes," replied Uncle Joseph, "my dear boy, it ia 
to Christianity that woman owes the high and just 
privileges which secure her happiness. It is certain 
that the Jews, as taught by God, always held their 
women in far superior light to the idolatrous nations 
by which they were surrounded, but yet it remained 
for our Lord himself to give them their due place in 
society here, and impart to them the hopes of immor- 
tality hereafter." 

Our travelers now prepared to leave Egypt, and 
journey toward the Holy Land, feeling that they were 
far from home, "strangers in a strange land." 

After a lone and difficult bargain with an Arab for 
three asses and a camel, they set out, having engaged 
an interpreter, and they had shortly the satisfaction 
of joining another party, who were glad to strengthen 



On the Desert. 



93 



their number, as all were alike fearful of encountering 
those bands oi Arab plunderers which infest the 
country, and render traveling- as dangerous as disa- 
greeable. The first night they slept out of doors, 
under the blankets with which they furnished them- 
selves, and eat of the provisions which also formed 
part of the baggage of their camel. The camel-driver 
made them some bread; he kneaded the dough in a 
leathern napkin, mixed a good deal of salt with it, 
and, having made a flat about an inch thick, baked it; 
it was found very good, and helped their breakfast 
materially; they were now fairly launched on the great 
desert, where the children of Israel wandered, but in 
a different direction. 

The second day's journey, their road still lay through 
the desert, but it was skirted by cultivated plains which 
were extremely beautiful, as the crops of down were 
springing up the most lovely green, and the retiring 
flood had still left many spots covered with . water, 
which appeared like rivers and lakes of silver, shining 
on emerald plains; the desert itself was enriched with 
wild shrubs, and presented a perfect contrast to the 
deserts of Nubia, being covered with abundance of 
dwarf vegetation, which the camels with their lone 
necks could reach as they went forward. 

They found that these useful and surprising animals, 
when grazing and without work, are capable of going 
five, six, or seven days without drinking, but that when 
traveling it is necessary that they should drink at least 
every three days; and the drivers who accompanied 
the present party of united travelers were observed 
never to lose any opportunity of thus refreshing them, 



Bedouin Arabs, 



95 



it being evident that, though they were able to live 
without water, they were much better for it. They 
could not fail to notice the bounty of Providence in 
thus planting the desert with vegetables of a succulent 
and nutritious kind; but their attention was repeatedly 
withdrawn from agreeable contemplations, by the ap- 
pearance of parties of Arabs of very suspicious looks, 
but who, on perceiving the present strength of their 
party, and that they were all armed, contented them- 
selves with asking for "backshish" (a present), but 
■did not venture to attack them. • . 

Thus passed, with little variation, seven days, in 
which their journey was much more pleasant than they 
could have expected it; the sand then became heavy 
and the roads laborious, and they observed many car- 
casses of asses and camels, which indicated robberies 
committed by the Bedouin Arabs, who are in appear- 
ance dark-skinned, with piercing eyes. 

They are of medium size, sinewy, strong and ex- 
ceedingly active. They are quite at home on horse- 
back, and as riders are not equalled anywhere on the 
globe. In intelligence and morals they hold a low 
rank. They practice polygamy, hold slaves, and think 
robbery of any person, except of their own race, en- 
tirely justifiable. Their highest virtue is that of 
hospitality. 

Rollin was very anxious to know all about these 
people, so Uncle Joseph volunteered to give him the 
desired information: "The name (pronounced Bed-oo- 
eeii) is from the Arab Bedowi, and means dweller in 
the desert. The Bedouins are the descendants of 
Ishmael, the son of Abraham and Hagar. Concern- 



96 The Pilgrims. 

ing this son, the angel when he found Hagar by the 
fountain in the wilderness, (Gen. 16, 7-14,) declared 
the prophecy that he should be a wild man, that his 
hand should be against every man, and every man's 




BEDOUIN FAMILY. 



hand against him, and that he should dwell in the 
presence of his kindred; also, that his offspring 
should be exceedingly numerous, so that it should not 
be numbered for multitude. Through all the ages 
down this prophecy has found its fulfilment. In ancient 



Bedouin Caravans. 



97 



times the Ishmaelites dwelt in tents, as the Bedouins 
do now. They were hardy, brave, warlike, kept ex- 
tensive flocks, lived in wild and uncultivated countries, 
and made frequent incursions for plunder upon the 
neiehborine nations who dwelt in cities and cultivated 
the soil. The same mode of life is still pursued by their 
descendants. They occupy their old home Arabia. 
Many live in bands of from two hundred to twenty or 
thirty thousand, and move their camps from place to 
place, as pasturage for their flocks or other considera- 
tions may lead. They despise agriculture and trade, 
and subsist chiefly by their flocks; the love of robbery 
and plunder is transmitted from generation to genera- 
tion. Their hand is against all their neighbors, and 
the hands of all men are against them. Through all 
the wars that have convulsed the nations of the East, 
they have never been conquered. In the seventh 
century they were reached by the preaching of 
Mohammed, and accepted his religion. Under his 
appeals their fierce, warlike spirit was aroused to the 
highest heat, and they became a terror to both Asia 
and Europe. They still continue devoted Mohamme- 
dans, and attend strictly to the teachings of that re- 
ligion." 

Our travelers met a small caravan, which made some 
insolent demands upon them, and from their manners 
appeared little better than the robbers they had feared; 
after passing them they crossed a plain of thick hard 
salt, resembling firmly frozen snow, which did not in 
the least pive wav to the feet of their animals. Whilst 
breakfasting, a man came up to them on horseback, 
who vapored a good deal about his power of stopping 



98 



The Pilgrims, 



European travelers, but rode off without doing them 
any injury, when told that they were Americans. A 
few hours afterward, on reaching some wells of fresh 




A CARAVAN. 



water, they had the misfortune to fall in with a large 
party of Tarobeen Arabs, who entered into a stormy 
dispute with the guides, which ended by levying a 



Over the Desert. 



99 



•contribution on all the party who were not well 
armed. 

On the evening of the ninth day they once more 
entered the abode of men, by reaching El Arish. 
This is a walled town in the midst of a barren plain. 
There are a few palm trees in the place, and a fine 
well of water, which is an object- of so much import- 
ance to those who, in the language of Scripture, are 
" travelers in a thirsty land," as to supersede all 
others. 

Soon after midnight they left this village, so as to 
avoid seeing any more of the Tarobeen Arabs. The 
desert now assumed its most favorable appearance, 
being adorned with shrubs as before, and they passed 
many flocks of sheep and goats, attended by armed 
peasants. They passed a temple of considerable 
magnitude, the tomb of a Sheik, which is a title 
given alike to a great man or a saint; and they saw 
some partridges, and a kind of a rat, called' by the 
conductor "Gerba" which runs like a kangaroo. At 
sunset they reached the village of Haneunis, which is 
seated in a valley, and its environs are prettily laid 
out, so as to give the whole a picturesque appearance; 
and they remarked that both the houses and the in- 
habitants were much cleaner and handsomer than 
those of Egypt. 

They now entered the track which brought them 
into what might be called an inhabited country, and 
had the satisfaction of knowing that they had passed 
over the desert, of which so many dangers are pre- 
dicted to all; and, except that their faces were tanned, 
and that they were a little wearied with going two 



IOO 



The Pilgrims. 



miles an hour for so many days, with nothing to vary 
the scene, some anxiety on the subject of Arab in- 
cursions, they did not find themselves the least worse 
for their long journey through the desert. 

The travelers reached Esdier, in which they took a 
hasty review of the remains of antiquity, and then 




ORIENTAL WELL. 



proceeded to Gaza, a frontier town of the land of 
Canaan, which bore in its appearance much of the 
beauty which the land of promise possessed. Syca- 
more, olives, mulberry, cedar, and fig-trees were abund- 
ant; but when they entered the town they found the 
houses poor and dirty, although the inhabitants were 
clean and well-looking. The women wore white or 
blue skirts, with a large white shawl thrown loosely 
over the head, which answered the purpose of a veil. 



Gates carried off by Samson. 



101 



CHAPTER VI. 

Rollin reads from the Bible — The Gates carried off' by Samson — 
The Natives — Uncle Joseph turns Doctor — The Smoke of a Christ- 
ian's Hair — Jaffa — The Port from which Jonah sailed — Convent 
of St. Peter — Scene of Napoleon's Massacre — Orange and Lemon 
Groves — Sunset on the Sea — The Call to Prayer — In the Mosque — 
Ramah — Valley of Jeremiah — -Valley of Elah — Picking Stones 
from the place that David slew Goliath. 



Rollin took his Bible from his pocket, and turning 
to Judges 16: 2, 3, read: "And it was told the Gazites, 
saying, Samson is come hither. And they compassed 
him in, and laid wait for him all night in the gate of the 
•city, and were quiet all the night, saying, In the morn- 
ing, when it is day, we shall kill him. And Samson 
lay till midnight, and arose at midnight, and took the 
doors of the gates of the city, and the posts, and went 
away with them, bar and all, and put them upon his 
shoulders, and carried them to the top of a hill that 
is before Hebron." 

After having visited the supposed place from which 
Samson carried away the gates, and satisfied them- 
selves fully in viewing Gaza, our Pilgrims decided on 
leaving. About 10 o'clock in the morning they started 
on their journey, and entered an open country, partly 
•cultivated, and at 3 o'clock in the afternoon they arrived 
at Asdoud, near which they found an old building, in- 
tended for a khan. It consisted of a large enclosed 
court, entered by an arched passage, within which, on 



102 



The Pilgrims. 



the sides, were piazzas; on the right of the south en- 
trance were various chambers, and on the left there had 
been a chapel, as appeared from an altar and a cross 
remaining, but the building had been destroyed by the 
Turks. 

But before Uncle Joseph had time to make any 
comments, they were surrounded by the natives, who 




GAZA. 

flocked around them not merely for curiosity, but under 
the impression that Uncle Joseph was a doctor, and 
they earnestly besought him to give some medicine to 
a sick young- man whom thev brought out to them. 
As Uncle Joseph had a small stock of needed medi- 
cines, he gladly complied with their request, taking 
care to give only that which could do no harm, and 
might probably render relief. On receiving it they 
immediately applied to Rollin for a lock of his hair. 



Superstition. — A sdoud. — Jaffa. 1 03 



Rollin could not understand why they made this 
request. The interpreter informed him that the people 
believed that the smoke of a Christian's hair burned 
whilst the medicine was working would insure a cure 
of the disorder. He took a hearty laugh over their 
superstition, and then complied with their request, to 
their great joy. On receiving it they immediately 
brought honey and bread as a reward, and when Uncle 
Joseph pressed them to take money for these articles 
of food they would not accept anything for them. 

They intended to go by way of Ascalon, where 
Samson slew thirty men; and where, it is said, there 
are the remains of a Roman amphitheatre; but this 
route they found the camel driver could not take, they 
therefore contented themselves with having seen 
Asdoud, in the Old Testament called Ashdod, and 
Aratus in the Acts of the Apostles, and bent their 
steps to Jaffa, the ancient Joppa. 

They left to their right Ramla, the ancient Arimathea, 
and Loudd, the ancient Lydda; then crossing the sand 
hills they came to the sea-beach, four or five miles 
from Jaffa, and continued along the coast till they 
came to the back of the hill on which the town stands, 
which they reached through beautiful gardens, although 
the soil is of deep sand. Rollin was very much inter- 
ested on arriving at a place so often named in sacred 
and profane history. 

He drew his Bible from his pocket for the purpose 
of reading over the story of how God spoke to the 
prophet Jonah, saying: " Arise, and go to Nineveh, 
that great city, and tell the people of the punishment 
that is coming upon them for their sins. But Jonah 



io4 



The Pilgrims. 




Jaffa. 



did not want to go, and he fled to Joppa." And here 
Rollin found himself on the spot where Jonah took a 
ship and fled to a place where he could not hear the 
Lord speaking to him. After discussing this subject 
with Uncle Joseph, and having located as near as possi- 
ble the port from which Jonah sailed, Uncle Joseph 
said: "You will always remember, dear Rollin, that 
this is the place where Simon, the tanner, lived, near 
by the sea, with whom Peter was lodging when the 
messenger came from Cornelius. Here Peter was 
praying on the house-top; and the houses in those 
days were much as you see them now, built with flat 
roofs, and a small building arranged in one corner 
especially for prayer. Whilst Peter was engaged in 
prayer, he grew very hungry, and wanted to eat; then 
he had a dream or vision. He saw the sky above 
open, and something like a sheet, held up at the four 
corners, was let down to the earth before him. In this 
sheet were all kinds of w T ild beasts and creeping things, 
and birds of the air. And there came a voice, saying, 
'Rise, Peter, kill and eat.' 

"At this Peter greatly wondered, for there were in 
the sheet such unclean creatures as the law of Moses 
forbade the Jews eating. But the voice spake again, 
saying, 'What God hath made clean, do not call for- 
bidden or unclean.' These words were spoken three 
times. The Jews thought because God had chosen 
them for his people that they were better than other 
nations, and that Jesus came to save them alone. 
They called all nations unclean, and did not want to 
preach the Gospel to them. But here God taught 
Peter that such thoughts were wrong, that he should 



io6 



The Pilgrims. 



not refuse to teach those commonly called unclean 
people. When Peter came down from the housetop, 




musing on what this could mean, the messenger from 
Cornelius met him, and told him of the vision of Cor- 



Orange and Lemon Groves. 



107 



nelius; Peter then saw the meaning of the vision, and 
went immediately to Cesarea and preached the Gos- 
pel to Cornelius and his family." 

They now visited the convent of St. Peter, an an- 
cient edifice, close to the sea, built upon the spot, 
where, it is said, this Apostle once lodged, (see Acts 10.) 
They were received with great consideration by the 
Monks, who warmly congratulated them on having 
entered the Holy Land. The brotherhood consisted 
of a superior, four friars, and ten lay-brothers. They 
wore gowns, cowls, and long beards, with white ropes 
around the body; some spoke Spanish, and some 
Italian. They conducted our pilgrims to a snug cell 
commanding a delightful view of the harbor, and paid 
them every attention. At twelve o'clock they were 
summoned to dinner, which consisted of vegetables, 
soup, fish, and stewed poultry. After dinner, which 
occupied a very short time, they retired to the apart- 
ment of the superior, where cakes were handed, and 
conversation took place. Uncle Joseph told Rollin 
that in this convent Bonaparte found his headquarters 
whilst at Jaffa, as considering it the most illustrous or 
holy; a rule in choosing his headquarters, doubtless, 
from political motives. 

On the following day they visited that memorable 
place, about a mile out of the city, where Napoleon 
inhumanly massacred 4,000 prisoners of war and in- 
habitants in cold blood, when the town was fully in 
his possession. Here he also caused the sick soldiers 
of his own army to be poisoned, to keep them from 
falling into the hands of the Turks. 

They found that the most interesting objects to the 



io8 



The Pilgrims. 



visitor in Jaffa and vicinity were the extensive orange 
and lemon groves and pomegranate gardens. There 
are several thousand of them in and near Jaffa, vary- 
ing in size from three to ten acres. Their fruit is ex- 
quisite, and larger than any of the kind to be found 
elsewhere. Millions of oranges and lemons are an- 
nually shipped from various ports of the Mediterranean. 




THE MOSQUE OF OMAR. 



Toward evening the pilgrims went down by the sea 
to witness the sunset. A cloudless Syrian day was 
drawing to a close. The great Mediterranean Sea 
stretched out before them westward. They could 
hear the murmur of its waves, that were just then but 
ripples of a larger growth, as they fell upon the shore. 
The round red sun touched the watery horizon as a 



Entering the Mosque, 



109 



man issued from the minaret of a mosque near by> 
and stood leaning against the railing of its balcony, 
far above the streets. He watched with them the set- 
ting sun. When the last speck of gold had disap- 
peared, he put one hand to his mouth, and with a voice 
that w r as half a song, uttered the invitation to evening 
prayer: "God is Great! There is no god but Godf 
Come to prayer!" The musical intonations passed 
over the flat-roofed houses, and down into the streets. 
A second and a third time the same invitation was 
given, and the man vanished within the minaret as 
quietly and quickly as he had appeared. 

This was the Mohammedan muezzen cry that was 
sounding at the same time from a hundred minarets 
of Cairo, from the many thousand scattered through- 
out the entire Moslem world, summoning men every- 
where to leave their pursuits and worship God, who 
had kept them during another day. The sun must 
set before this invitation is given, lest men be inclined 
to worship it instead of the Creator. 

The steeples of our American churches correspond 
to the minarets of the Mohammedan mosques. In the 
latter the human voice takes the place of one of our 
bells. As the ringing of the church-bells on Sunday 
tells us to come to God's house, so this human cry re- 
minds the Arab who hears it, that the hour of prayer 
has come. Uncle Joseph remarked to Rollin: "should 
you follow the men who are entering the mosque 
in answer to the muezzen-call, you will find nothing 
inside to remind you of one of our home prayer-meet- 
ings. You know how it is if you come just at the last 
moment. A company of men and women and young 



I TO 



The Pilgrims. 



people sit quietly waiting for the meeting to begin. 
The minister has his hymn-book in his hand, and looks 
toward the opening and shutting door, glad to see so 
many coming, and yet wishing that all would come a 
little more promptly. At last there is a lull in the 
arriving, and he arises to give out the opening hymn. 
With singing, and prayer, and the reading and ex- 
plaining of God's W ord, an hour passes. 

"There is nothing like this in the mosque that our 
Arab friend is approaching. When he comes to the 
doorway he takes off his slippers, or sandals, and 
carrying them in his hand, enters a square open court. 
The mosque is the house of God, and is therefore a 
holy place; and as God told Moses when he came 
near to the burning bush, in which God himself was, 
to take off his shoes, for the place was holy ground; 
so the Koran tells the Mohammedan that he must 
never enter a mosque without first removing his 
slippers. These are covered with dust and the dirt 
of the streets, and would defile God's house. In some 
Oriental cities, as in Algiers, you can tell the Jews 
from the Mohammedans by looking at their feet: If 
they wear shoes, they are Jews; if they wear slippers, 
they are Mohammedans. In all other respects their 
dresses may be alike, but the slipper is easily put off 
and on at the door of the mosque. 

" Returning to our Arab friend, we see him washing 
his hands and feet at a fountain of running water in 
the centre of the court. This matter of partial out- 
ward cleanliness must always be attended to before 
praying. We think it more important to enter the 
house of God with clean hearts than with clean hands, 



In the Mosque. 



1 1 1 



and yet nobody will quarrel with those who are par- 
ticular about their outward cleanliness at such times. 

"From the court we step within the mosque. And 
we too must have left our shoes outside. Within we 
see no chairs or benches; mats or rugs cover the 
spaces between the pillars that support the roof. Here 
and there you see a man engaged in his private de- 
votions. You will find no women or pfirls among- the 
men; the Mohammedan religion makes but little pro- 
vision for the souls of women. 




WASHING HANDS. 



" Our Arab friend has already reached the spot where 
he is accustomed to pray. Laying aside his outer 
cloak, he begins his prostrations. He stands with his 
head bowed, always with his face turned in the direc- 
tion of Mecca, where Mohammed, the great prophet, 
is buried. He bends his body forward, until it is at 
right angles with his legs. For several seconds he 
keeps himself in this position. He stands upright 
again. He sits down cross-legged. He gets upon 
his knees and bows his head until it touches the 



112 



The Pilgrims. 



ground. These movements he repeats during per- 
haps fifteen minutes. At times we see his lips mov- 
ing; we cannot hear what he mutters, but we know he 
is going over certain forms given in the Koran, and 
doing it, we fear, very much as the heathen do, mak- 
ing but a vain repetition. Having finished his prayers, 
he resumes his cloak and shoes, and quietly goes out 
into the street. He has obeyed the muezzen-call to 
prayer." 

Once more the Pilgrims set out on their journey, 

taking with them, as be- 
fore, provisions for the 
way. These consisted 
of bread, cheese, flour, 
and water, the latter con- 
tained in utensils resem- 
bling bottles, which were 
the skins of animals in- 
flated and closed at the 
mouth by slips of wood. They are so strong that 
they last for a long time, and when worn out can be 
patched. They are of a dark color, and hang up ex- 
posed to the smoke, which always fills the hut of an 
Arab, and frequently alluded to in the Holy Scriptures. 

Leaving the coast, they now started for Ramah, the 
ancient Arimathea, held in high estimation from being 
the place where Josehp of Arimathea was born; that 
kind and fearless disciple, who, in the midst of a wicked 
and cruel generation, sought out the body of Jesus to 
honor it by the rites of burial in his own future 
sepulchre. 

Uncle Joseph said to Rollin: " Ramah and Lydda 




CARRYING WATE1 



Ramah. 



were the first places which fell into the hands of the 
Crusaders, and this place gives proof of its former 
importance by showing the ruins of that large church, 
greatly resembling the Cathedral of St. Andrews in 
Scotland. The tower of that church was much injured, 
as you can see, by lightning, several years ago." 

This injury has made it quite difficult of ascent, but 
Rollin was possessed of a great desire to attempt it, 
and, being light of foot, and accustomed to scale the 
precipices of his native mountains, succeeded in climb- 
ing nearly to the top, and enjoyed thence a widespread 
and beautiful prospect, including the sea-coast of Jaffa, 
and the whole surrounding country; which showed, 
in various directions, flocks of sheep, and shepherds 
playing on their pipes, in all the ancient simplicity of 
pastoral life. 

Having seen all that was of interest to them, they 
replenished their provisions, and set out again, and 
after crossing an extensive plain, entered a labyrinth 
among the mountains, called the valley of Jeremiah. 
The sides were steep, and clothed with brush-wood, 
amidst which a few flocks of goats, guarded by fero- 
cious looking Arabs, picked up a scanty living. No 
ravine could be more wild, romantic and terrific in its 
grandeur. Rollin was perfectly wild with excitement 
over it. Sometimes the road was so narrow, and the 
risings so precipitous, that the mules could scarcely 
be compelled to go forward, but at last, to their great 
joy, they found that they had arrived at a consider- 
able height, as the sea was again seen, and looking 
back they perceived Jaffa and Ramah in the distance; 
after which, by degrees, they emerged into a more 

8 



ii_4 



The Pilgrims. 



level district, and descended towards a small village 
called Bug-as. 

On reaching this place, to their great consternation 
a party of Arabs drew themselves across the road in 
a hostile manner, and seemed determined to offer in- 
sult, and most probably intended to rob them. These 
persons were of swarthy complexion, with sparkling 
eyes, and teeth of extraordinary whiteness. They 
were mostly of wild aspect, and were all clothed in 
goat-skins, open at the neck, without stockings, their 
feet in slippers, and shabby turbans on their heads, 
with girdles round their bodies. 

They demanded of our Pilgrims: ''Who they were, 
and whence they came?" On replying that they were 
Americans — and Rollin put considerable emphasis 
on Americans — the Arabs' ill-humor suddenly van- 
ished, and they expressd a willingness to serve the 
Americans. Of course they expected to be well paid 
for whatever service they might perform. 

When the party were gone, the guide of our Pilgrims 
who had been with them all the way from Ramah, 
pointed out the ruins of a small church, and said it 
was built upon the spot where Jeremiah, the prophet, 
was supposed to have been born. 

They now entered the valley of Elah, where Saul 
encountered the Philistines, and paused to observe 
how exactly the local situation corresponds with that 
given of it in the Scriptures. Soon after they crossed 
the bed of the stream from which David chose the 
stones for his sling, with one of which he slew the 
giant Goliath, when, at this very place, he defied the 
armies of the God of Israel. Rollin could not for- 



Valley of Elah. 



"5 



bear to dismount and load himself with pebbles, re- 
calling, as he did so, all the actions of that princely 
shepherd to his mind; from the time when he came 
to see the camp in this valley, conscious of the high 
destination of Heaven, yet utterly ignorant as to the 
fulfilment of it, to that period when he swayed the 
scepter over his native land. 

" Ah, Uncle Joseph," said Rollin, "how little did I 
think when we were 'Fighting Giants,' that some day I 
would pick stones from the same stream that David 
did." 

Fully occupied w T ith this subject, Rollin could think 
on no other, and saw nothing else that interested him 
until the tract became very elevated, and the weary 
steps of his mule led him to consider how long and 
fatiguing this day's journey had been, when at once 
he found himself at the top of the hill, and by a sud- 
den turn in the road — Jerusalem itself — Jerusalem, 
seen under all the glories of a setting sun, was before 
him. 



n6 



The Pilgrims, 



CHAPTER VII. 

In sight of Jerusalem — Founding of Jerusalem — Rollin quotes 
History — The Siege — Destruction of the Temple — Tower of 
David — English Church — Gate of St. Stephens— Chapels— The 
Brook Cedron — Mt. Olivet — Mosque of Omar — Foot-print of 
Mohammed — Gethsemane. 



Rollin was now fully aroused, his emotions were 
indescribable as he gazed on the spot where life and 
immortality were insured to man. 

Our Pilgrims slowly pursued their way, admiring 
the city as it lay before them, glowing in its splendor 
of an eastern sunset, which threw on its towers, mina- 
rets, mosques, monasteries, and the dome over the 
church of the holy sepulchre, a radiant and glorious 
light. They cast around their eyes, as if to concen- 
trate in one view all the sacred places, hallowed by 
the foot-steps of the Redeemer. 

Whilst Rollin was conjecturing as to places in the 
city, such as Pilate's hall, the site of the temple, etc.,. 
Uncle Joseph reminded him that the city before them 
was not the Jerusalem where Christ's ministry took 
place, for that fallen city had suffered the fate her 
crimes merited. The plow had passed over the place 
of her palaces, and the wild fig was springing, and the 
raven was croaking on the place where the magnificent 
temple stood. 

Their guide directed them to an inn, where they 
found comfortable lodging for the night, at a small 



In Sight of Jerusalem. 117 

cost. In the morning they arranged their plans for 
the day. Uncle Joseph, as a preliminary to particular 
observations, made some remarks on the country in 
general. 

"You see, my dear Rollin, from the whole face of 




NEAR JERUSALEM. 



the land we have hitherto passed, that Palestine is a 
rocky country, and, allowing for the difference of 
climate, a good deal resembles our mountainous 
Pennsylvania; I think it not unlikely that you can give 



n8 



The Pilgrims, 



me some account of Jerusalem, for your reading is. 
more receut than mine; so pray, my boy, tell me what 
you know." 

Rollin replied: "Jerusalem is supposed to have 
been founded by Melchisedek, who is called king of 
Salem, and priest of the Most High God (see Gen. 
ch. 14), two thousand years before Christ. It was 
soon after that time captured by the Jebusites, who 
extended the walls and constructed a castle or citidal 
on Mount . Zion. Joshua took the city, but not the 
fortress, nor was it established as the capital till the 
time of David, and to the power of Solomon, his son, 
it was indebted for all its grandeur and beauty; in 
particular for that sumptuous edifice, the temple, a. 
building never surpassed by any age or nation. In 
the time of Rehoboam, this city was stormed and. 
plundered by the king of Egypt; during the reign 
of Manasseh, it was besieged by the Assyrians, and 
the monarch made captive; and Nebuchadnezzar razed 
the fortifications, burnt the temple, and carried away 
the inhabitants as prisoners." 

"Yes, that was indeed a remarkable period, alike 
for the conqueror and the conquered," said Uncle 
Joseph; "but go on, Rollin, I rejoice to find that you 
are so well versed in the history of a people closely 
connected with everything most valuable to us." 

Rollin continued: "Seventy years after this event,, 
the people were restored to this country, and Zerub- 
babel began to rebuild the sacred structure. Alexan- 
der the Great marched against the city, but was pro- 
pitiated by the high priest and his brethren, and entered 
the city as a friend, offering himself sacrifices in the 



The Siege. ug 

temple; but it was afterward sacked by Antiochus, 
who profaned the holy temple by placing the image of 
Jupiter there. The Maccabees rescued their country 
from the hands of the oppressor; but in a contest 




between their descendants, the Romans were applied 
to, and that wonderful people, then masters of the 
world, interfered in such a manner that Pompey be- 
came master of Jerusalem; and when Judea revolted 
from the Roman yoke, Titus besieged the city, cap- 
tured and totally destroyed it, fulfilling the prophecies 
of our Lord on this subject, he having been born and 



120 



The Pilgrims, 



completed his ministry on earth between the time of 
Pompey, Titus and Vespasian, preceding the latter 
about sixty years." 

"Rollin, I suppose you have read about the destruc- 
tion of the magnificent temple of the Jews at this 
place," said Uncle Joseph. 

"Yes," replied Rollin. " At the time Jerusalem was 
besieged by the Romans, the people were assembled 
in great numbers at the feast of the Passover. You 
remember long before God had promised if the Jews 
obeyed him he would not allow anyone to take their 
land, or even try to, while they were gathered together 
to worship him in his temple at Jerusalem. It was on 
this promise the Jews trusted, and this made them so 
bold in defending the city against the Romans. But 
they had not obeyed God; they had killed his own 
Son, and God had forsaken them. Jerusalem was 
taken, and the temple destroyed. Josephus says: 
'Tme famine raged with such fierceness among the 
Jews, that thousands died with hunger. In every 
house where there was the least morsel of food, the 
inmates fought over it like dog's. The dearest friends 
fought over the most miserable little scraps. They 
chewed their belts, and shoes, and tore off the leather 
from their shields. They ate up wisps of hay, and all 
sorts of nasty things — anything that might help to 
sustain life.' 

"Titus wished that so magnificent a work of art as 
the temple should be spared, because it would always 
remain an ornament to the Roman Empire. But the 
temple was doomed to destruction. The fatal tenth 
of August came, the very day on which the former 



Destruction of the Temple. 



121 



temple had been destroyed by the king of Babylon. 

"The Romans saw that the temple was made of 
gold, and believing that they would find untold treas- 
ure, a Roman soldier, without waiting for orders, 
snatched up a burning brand, and threw it through a 
small golden door on to the north side. A fearful 
cry was raised by the Jews, who rushed to the rescue, 
caring nothing for their lives, now that their temple 
was in flames. On every side was slaughter and flight. 
The feeble and unarmed were butchered; around the 
altar were heaps of slain; down the steps flowed a 
stream of blood that washed down the bodies that 
lay about. While the temple was in flames, the 
Romans showed no mercy to anyone; old men, 
women, children and priests, fell beneath the sword. 
The flames roared upward from the temple, and as it 
stood on a hill, and burned with tremendous fury, it 
seemed from a distance as if the whole city were in a 
blaze. Six thousand people gathered in a small part 
of the cloister of the outer court, a false prophet hav- 
ing told them God would save them in the temple. 
The Romans set fire to the place, and the whole multi- 
tude perished in the flames. 

" Adrian began a new city upon the ruins, which is 
supposed to be the present one; but to Constantine 
and his mother, Helena, we may principally ascribe it, 
and, as they restored the worship of the true God, 
and were desirous of doing honor to our Lord, to 
them we may ascribe the form it now bears, and the in- 
closing of those places, held sacred by us as Christians, 
with the gates. The Caliph Omar was the next con- 
queror, and it was held by his successors until the 



122 



The Pilgrims. 




Tower of David, 



123 



united princes of Europe made war in its behalf, res- 
cued it in the great crusade from pagan hands, and 
under Godfrey of Bouillon displayed the standard of 
the cross from its walls; but in the year 12 17, the 
advantages thus • obtained were lost, and Jerusalem, 
since then, has remained only the capital of a Turkish 
province." 

The Pilgrims now started to view the city and its 
surroundings. The first public building that demanded 
their attention was a large citadel, or the 4 4 Tower of 
David," which stands immediately south of the Joppa 
gate, and is partly hidden from view by the tower of 
that gate as you approach it on the Joppa road. This 
is an irregular group of fine square towers, all constitut- 
ing one fortification, and surrounded by a ditch or 
moat. This moat is about thirty feet wide at the top, 
and where it has not been filled up to some extent, is 
about twenty feet deep. It is walled on the outer 
side, and this wall rises about three feet above the 
surface to prevent persons and beasts from falling in- 
to it. This moat is 460 feet long on the western side, 
which is outside of the city, and it is nearly as long 
on the eastern side. On the other two sides it is about 
half as lonor From the bottom of the moat on its 
inner side, the foundation-wall of the towers rises at 
an angle of about 6o° until it reaches the level of the 
outside surface, but the upper wall resting on this is 
perpendicular. This foundation-wall is built of very 
large stones, many of them eight or ten feet long, and 
three feet thick, and they bear the ancient "Jewish 
bevel," which indicates that they are of early Jewish 
origin. The upper part of the structure is evidently 



English Church, 



125 



modern, and probably dates from the last re-construc- 
tion of the walls in 1542. Its entire height is about 
eighty feet. A few small pieces of cannon are mounted 
on the towers, and the citadel is occupied by a garrison 
of Turkish soldiers. 

Immediately on the left of the citadel, across an open 
space resembling a wide street, is the American Consul- 
ate; and standing back from this street is the English 
church, with the residence of the English Bishop of 
Jerusalem adjoining it. Both the latter are handsome 
buildings of stone. Services in English are held in 
the church every Lord's day, and nearly all the Pro- 
testant residents of the city, as well as travelers, who 
speak English, attend these services. 

Our Pilgrims entering the open space just mentioned, 
between the "Tower of David" and the English 
church, they found it running southward, narrowing 
into a street and passing the barracks on the right, 
and the extensive inclosure of the Armenian church 
and convent on the left; here was found a large gate- 
way admitting them into a court, whence they had 
access to this Armenian church of St. James, a large 
and massive building with tawdry decorations. The 
residence of the Patriarch is farther south; and also 
an extensive and irregular group of buildings occupied 
by the priest and monks of the Armenian faith. In 
the portico of the church of St. James, our visitors 
were struck with two interesting objects: one an im- 
mense plank of hard wood suspended on chains, which 
was struck with wooden mallets to call the priests and 
monks to prayer (answering to the bell in the Latin 
convents), and a cistern supplied with a little metallic 



126 The Pilgrims. 

bucket, from which they were at liberty to draw and 
drink the coolest and purest water to be found in 
Jerusalem. 




DAVID'S CASTLE. 



Our travelers then left the city by the a-ate of St. 
Stephens, and visited the place where, it is said, he 
suffered martyrdom; after which they were shown the 
church of the sepulchre of the Virgin Mary, situated 
between the Mount of Olives and Jerusalem, founded, 
like so many others, by St. Helena. The church is a 
small, square building-, with a flat roof, and a door on 



Mount Olivet. 



127 



the south side, by which there is a descent into the 
interior by steps, having on the right hand a small 
■chapel, with the tomb of St. Ann, the mother of Mary; 
on the left is another, where Joseph, the husband of 
Mary, is supposed to be buried. Eighteen lamps 
were burning in these chapels, and, although doubts 
might arise as to the authenticity of the fact that those 
distinguished persons were indeed buried here, yet, 
since it was certain that their dust had minified with 
its native earth within a little space, and might proba- 
bly be here, a pensive and tender tone of mind, in 
unison with the scene, was induced, which made its 
impression indelible on the memory. 

The party next crossed the brook Cedron, and pro- 
ceeded to the Mount of Olives, passing in their way 
several grottos, excavated in the rock. Higher up 
they reached a cavern, or subterraneous church, con- 
sisting of several arched vaults, where it is said the 
apostles composed the creed now bearing their name, 
and which Rollin saw, with grief and indignation, ivas 
now filled with rubbish; but he forgot even this, when, 
about fifty yards further, the spot was pointed out to 
them where our Lord stood when he looked down 
upon Jerusalem in sorrow, and pronounced that mem- 
orable prophecy so awfully fulfilled. 

From this summit of Olivet the Pilgrims had a 
beautiful view of the surrounding country; and, with 
feelings of reverence, they remembered the ascension 
of our Lord from this very Mount. 

In descending, our travelers noticed the fine situa- 
tion of that spot where the temple had once stood, 
and even now is held sacred by the Moslems, who, 



128 



The Pilgrims. 



for some time, hesitated about building there their 
principal mosque. 

Uncle Joseph, on seeing the mosque of Omar, said: 
"This mosque stands where once stood the temple. 
It is also called ' Dome of the Rock.' It occupies 
part of the spacious area known as the l Haram-esh- 
Sherif — 'The Noble Sanctuary.' This area is en- 
closed by a high wall, with eight gates, and paved 




MOUNT OLIVET. 



with flat stone. It embraces the summit of Mount 
Moriah, the spot where Oman had his threshing-floor; 
and where Abraham, according to tradition, offered 
Isaac. The Bible, however, says nothing of the pre- 
cise place where this offering occurred, except that it 
was on a mountain. 

"Each mosque of the Mohammedans has a place 
called tarbe, which is the grave of its founder. The 
tomb is of purest marble, six or eight feet long, cov- 
ered with green velvet or satin. 

"It is not lawful to enter a mosque with shoes or 



Mosque of Omar. 



1 29 



stockings on. Women are never allowed to enter at 
all; but must worship in the outer porches. 

"This mosque stands only second to the great 
mosque at Mecca, the tomb of their prophet, in the 
veneration of the Mohammedan Jews. 

"Any Christian intruder discovered within its sacred 
precints would be speedily put to death. These wor- 
shipers, as you see, have removed their slippers, and 
stand bowing with greatest reverence. 

"At the northern extremity of this mosque is the 
Golden Gate, which is closed by a tower in which a 
soldier always stands on guard. 

"The Mohammedans believe that through this gate 
the Christians will sometime enter and possess the 
city. 

"'It shall be trodden down by the Gentiles until the 
time of the Gentiles be fulfilled,' are the words of the 
Scriptures, and the time will come, no doubt, when 
the crescent shall no longer glitter over the- battle- 
ments of Jerusalem, nor the banner of the Mohamme- 
dan Prophet wave over its walls." 

The travelers found no other difficulty of admission, 
but that of the taking off their shoes. The)' followed 
the guide, and saw the interior as well as the exterior 
of this second mosque of Mohammedanism, as Jeru- 
salem is its second holy city. They noticed that inside 
of the mosque there are a number of very massive 
marble columns of rich, dark colors, and a few of por- 
phyry. No two of these columns are alike. The 
ornamentation of the interior is gorgeous, sparkling 
like diamonds. The pavement is of marble-mosaic. 
The fifty-six windows of deeply stained glass, beau- 



13° 



The Pilgrims. 



tiful to look upon, make the interior offensively 
gloomy. 

But that which attracted the attention of Rollin as 
the most interesting object in the mosque, was the 

large lim e stone 
rock immediately 
under the dome 
and in the center 
of the building. 
It stands from 
three to four feet 
above the marble 
floor, and is about 
sixty feet long, 
and forty feet 
wide; marks the 
center of Mount 
Moriah, and, ac- 
cording to Jewish 
tradition, the cen- 
ter ot the earth. It is enclosed by an iron railing. 
According to a rabbinical tradition, this rock stood in 
the Holy of Holies, and upon it rested the ark of the 
covenant with the mercy-seat. If this mosque stands 
where the ancient temple stood, of which there can 
be no doubt, this rock must have been inside of the 
temple. The Mohammedans say that when Mo- 
hammed ascended to heaven on his wonderful steed 
El-Burak, he left his foot-print in the rock, and, as the 
rock wanted to follow the prophet up to heaven, the 
angel Gabriel held it in its place, and also left the 
prints of his angelic fingers in the rock. Many more 




ML Olivet. 131 

alike foolish things, not all so innocent, may be learned 
in modern Jerusalem. 

They also observed many olive trees as they de- 
scended, of a very great age. Uncle Joseph said that 




APPRO ACHI>i <j THE MOSQUE OF OMAR. 



"at Athens there were groves of Olives older than 
the most ancient buildings of that city — if so, these 
trees had, perhaps, survived the ruin of Jerusalem, 
and had grown in the time of our Lord himself." 



132 



The Pilgrims. 



These observations were cut short by the arrival 
at the Garden of Gethsemane, which is situated at 
the foot of the Mount of Olives, near the brook 
Cedron. It is a piece of ground surrounded by a low 
wall, several feet high, and is about half an acre in 
extent. Here seven olive trees are found, said by 
the Catholics to have been in existence at the time 
our Lord was upon the earth; and so highly are they 
venerated that any Catholic who was known to pluck 
their leaves, or injure them in the least would be sub- 
jected to an excommunication from the privileges 
of his church. Beads are made from the stones of 
these olives, and a string of them was afterward given 
to Rollin, as the most sacred object that could be 
presented to a traveler. 

It was in this garden that our Lord retired to pray, 
and endured that awful agony of spirit, in which, for 
a moment, he shrunk from the terrific scene to which 
his closing ministry on earth was now hastening. 
(See Matt. 24; Mark 14; John 18.) At the upper 
end is the spot where the Apostles, unconscious of the 
sufferings of their beloved Master, and weary with 
watching, fell asleep; and in the middle is the place 
where Judas met him and betrayed him by a kiss. 

In this place are found many grottos, and it occurred 
to Uncle Joseph that it had probably been used in 
former times as a burial place, since it was an ancient 
practice to bury the dead in gardens. Our Lord him- 
self was so interred. (See John 19: 41.) Almost all 
the places pointed out as remarkable in the Holy Land 
and the whole of the neighborhood, are in grottos, or 
gardens; and the Jews of the present day ornament 



134 



The Pilgrims. 



their burial-grounds like gardens, which proves the 
antiquity of the practice, and increases the credibility 
that these places are held in veneration from authentic 
tradition. 

The Pilgrims now returned to their inn much fatigued, 
but here they found true hospitality. After an evening 
meal, and their devotions, they retired for the night* 
with bright anticipations of the morrow. 



Valley of Jehoshaphat. 135 



CHAPTER VIII. 

Valley of Jehoshaphat — Pool of Siloara — Mount of Offence — 
Burying Place — Place of Judgment — The Streets of Jerusalem — 
Dolorous Way — Mount Zion — Chamber of the Last Supper — 
Needle's Eye — Well of the Magi — Superstitions. 



When our Pilgrims arose on the morrow, the sky 
was covered with dark clouds, which soon began 
pouring down a heavy rain, and for several days they 
were confined to the inn; but as soon as the weather 
allowed, they again set out to visit the most remark- 
able places of the city. 

Their first walk was to the valley of Jehosaphat, 
which lies on the eastern side of the garden of Geth- 
semane. Here the first object pointed out was the 
pit of Nehemiah, where the avenger of Israel discov- 
ered the sacred fire which had been concealed there 
during the Babylonish captivity. Soon afterwards 
they were shown the place where the Prophet Isaiah 
is said to have been sawn asunder. As history is 
silent on this subject, Rollin eagerly inquired, "What 
are the particulars handed down by tradition?" 

"It is said," replied Uncle Joseph, "that Manasseh, 
that wicked king, had formed an idol, which he com- 
manded to be worshiped. The prophet earnestly en- 
deavored to dissuade him from this act of sin, on 
which the brutal monarch punished his zeal by order- 
ing that he should be tied between two boards and 
sawn asunder; and it is, I think, evident that this 
account was known and credited by St. Paul, from 



1 3 6 



The Pilgrims. 



his enumerating this horrid punishment amongst 
those which were undergone by the early saints and 
martyrs." 




POOL OF SILOAM. 



A little beyond the scene of this martyrdom, they 
reached the pool of Siloam, frequently alluded to in 
the Scriptures. 



Pool of Silo am. 



137 



Uncle Joseph remarked: "In former times the city 
was larger than it now is, and the pool was nearer the 
wall; but it was always on the outside. It is one of 
the few objects connected with Jerusalem concerning 
whose identity and location there can be no mistake, 
as it still preserves its original name under the Arabic 
word Silwan. It is a small body of water, as you 
see, being about fifty feet long, by eighteen feet wide. 
The depth of the water varies from three to eighteen 
feet — arrangements having evidently been made long 
ago to lesson or deepen it by gates, or by opening or 
closing its overflow in other ways. Some believe 
that all the water comes from fountains springing up 
at a distance, which are led by underground conduits 
to the pool. Josephus says that in his day the water 
of Siloam was very sweet and pure." 

Rollin secured some of the water in their drinking 
jar, but found it to be of a blackish color and disagree- 
able taste. 

They found the pool in ruin. Its arches were 
broken, its sides were fallen in, its stairway a frag- 
ment. Still around its edges wild flowers and other 
plants w r ere growing luxuriously, while along its banks, 
as its waters flowed in a narrow stream down the 
valley, gardens were found, and nature blossomed 
with beauty. 

Uncle Joseph continued: "To readers of the 
Bible, the pool of Siloam is an exceedingly interest- 
ing object. It was from Siloam that the Jewish priests 
brought the water which was poured on the great 
altar on the last and great day of the Feast of Taber- 
nacles amid the shoutings of the people. It was to 



i3« 



The Pilgrims. 



this Siloam water our Lord pointed when he said: 
'If any man thirst, let liim come to Me and drink/ 
To the pool of Siloam, also, Jesus sent the blind man 
to wash the eyes which he had anointed with clay. 
It is probable, too, that the ordinance of baptism was 
administered here to the thousands who, in the early 
days, believed in our Lord. 

"Over against this pool is the 'Mount of Offence', 
so called, from Solomon having there committed those 

acts of idolatry, to 
which he was tempted 
by his strange wives. 
Near the foot of this 
place 'the field of 
blood ' is shown, where 
it is supposed the trai- 
tor Judas hanged him- 
self; and beyond this, 
are found two massy 
pieces of antiquity, one 
of which is named the 
Tomb of Zachariah and 
Absalom. It is formed in an extraordinary manner 
out of the natural rock, about eighteen feet high, and 
ornamented with semi-columns of the Doric order, 
hewn in the entire stone, and supporting a cornice, 
over which rises a pyramidal roof. Since Absalom 
was not supposed to be buried in this valley, it is con- 
jectured to have been formed during the lifetime of 
this prince; and such was the antipathy of the Jews 
to his memory, that they are said to have thrown 
stones at it in passing, as a mark of their reprobation 




ABSALOM'S TOMB. 



The Place of Judgment. 



139 



of his unnatural rebellion against his father. Near 
it is the tomb of Jehosaphat, which gives name to the 
valley. 

"In this valley is a burying place, still belonging 
to the Hebrew population in Jerusalem, and those who 
still retain their ancient desire of laying their bones 
with those of their fathers — a desire, perhaps, inherent 
in all people, but least important in the eyes of those 
whose hopes of immortality are the strongest." 

Rollin, on casting his eyes around the place where 
he stood, said: "Why, Uncle Joseph, I cannot see 
why the Jews should believe that the general judgment 
will take place in this valley, certainly it would be too 
small a place for such a purpose." 

"The idea has arisen," answered Uncle Joseph^ 
"from the prophet Joel, who says that 'all nations shall 
be gathered here.' This place is almost universally 
believed by the Jews to be the place selected for the 
judgment; but I think that the prophet speaks in 
figurative sense, for as 'of that day and that hour 
knoweth no man, not even the angels in heaven,' so 
neither can any place be fixed on, where that 'great 
and awful day of the Lord' shall be revealed." 

After this, for several days, our Pilgrims went 
through the city, and on every side of it, where any- 
thing could be seen, all their observations agreed fully 
with the descriptions given by other travelers. 

The Christians reside in a particular quarter of the 
city, called Harat-El Nasurat, Harat signifies street. 
The houses are low, flat in the roofs, have few windows 
to the front, as they generally look into a quadrangular 
court backwards. These buildings are generally en- 



140 



The Pilgrims. 




The Streets of Jerusalem. 



141 



riched by a cloister with galleries round it, which are 
sometimes faced with lattice work. Fountains are 
constructed in the center, and fruit trees generally 
grow in these courts, that throw out a delicious per- 
fume, and make some amends for the impurities of the 
streets. 

The doors of the houses are so low that they can- 
not be entered without stooping, a circumstance arising, 
probably, in the present day, from the jealousy of the 
Christians, who dread giving any facility of entrance 
to the Mohammedans, as they would not hesitate to 
use it for purposes of plunder; but it corresponds 
with ancient usaee, as we find from the caution of 
Solomon, when he says, "he that exalteth his gate, 
seeketh destruction." 

The massive gates of the city are shut every eve- 
ning at sunset, and opened at sunrise, which is also 
an ancient custom. One of them, called the Golden 
Port, which opens fronting the Mount of Olives, is 
said to be that by which our Lord entered in triumph. 
The doors of these entrances are locked by wooden 
keys, about a foot in length, and an inch in thickness, 
having at one end small iron spikes, equal to the num- 
ber of bolts introduced in the lock. 

The streets of Jerusalem were found generally 
steep, dirty, and narrow; in dry weather choked with 
dust, in wet weather almost impassable from the dust 
being converted into thick mud. Many of the houses 
are built of unburnt brick, which is easily wasted, 
either by rain, or drought, which melts or pulverizes 
them, and tends to produce this effect. It also ex- 
plains why the Israelites were distressed for straw, 



142 



The Pilgrims, 




Dolorous Way. — Ecco Homo Arch. 143 



when under the Egyptian task masters, for that mate- 
rial was required to form a connecting fibrous substance 
in the bricks themselves, and not for the purpose of 
burning or baking them, as some have supposed. 

Of the ancient palace of Pontius Pilate, they found 
but two steps remaining, which projected from a large 
gateway, called emphatically "Grief." The flight of 
stairs called scala sancta at Rome, which persons 
are permitted only to ascend on their knees, are said 
to have been taken from this place, and are therefore 
deemed peculiarly holy, because they suppose them 
to have been trodden by our Saviour in proceeding 
to the hall of judgment; they were among the relics 
transported by St. Helena to the Roman capital. 

From this place our travelers proceeded up the 
street, which is said to have been trodden by the 
Redeemer on his way to Mount Calvary. Here they 
found many superstitious notions of the Roman Cath- 
olic Church. The street is called Dolorous Way, and 
ends on Mount Calvary. The first object of interest 
was an arch in ruins, called "Ecco Homo Arch." 
The monk, who was acting as guide, told them that 
from the top of this arch Pilate presented Jesus to the 
multitude. About a hundred yards further on were 
found the ruins of a building, which the guide said 
was the building in which the Saviour was scourged. 
They were shown the spot where the mother of Jesus 
fainted on beholding her Son bearing the cross; also 
the place where the procession met Simon of Cyrene, 
whom they compelled to aid Christ in bearing his 
cross. They next arrived at a strong vaulted arch, in 
which a door was hung, called the "gate of judgment," 



144 



The Pilgrims, 



through which malefactors were led to the place of 
execution. This was in ancient times in the western 
wall of the city, but is now almost in the center of 
Jerusalem. 

The whole way from the arch there is a gradual 
ascent, but the road becomes more contracted in as- 
cending Mount Calvary. Here the street of Dolorous. 
Way terminates; and their guide would have them 
enter the church of the Holy Sepulchre, and see the 
spot where our Lord suffered. They did not enter 
at this time, but on their return looked in upon the 
Armenian convent, founded where James, the brother 
of John, it is said, was beheaded by Herod. The 
view of the interior of the sanctuary here is very 
magnificent, the altar being richly adorned, as well as 
the pulpit, with mother-of-pearl inlaid; and what is 
much more remarkable in this country, it was really 
clean, and the priests were particularly polite and at- 
tentive. In the chapel here they preserve, in a locked 
case, three large stones, one of which, they assert, to 
be the same on which Moses broke the two tables of 
the law; the next was brought from the place where 
Christ was baptized in Jordan; and the third was 
brought from the Mount of Transfiguration. 

Leaving this church, they proceeded to tire gate of 
Mount Zion, and visited another, said to be built where 
the house of Caiphas stood, adjoining to which a small 
cell is pointed out as a place where Jesus was impris- 
oned, before he was carried into the presence of Pilate. 
Under the altar they show a stone, which, it is pre- 
sumed, was that by which Joseph of Arimathea secured 
the grave of our Lord; it is of a red color, seven feet 



Chamber of the Last Supper. 



H5 



lone, and three feet wide. In the outer court were 
many tomb-stones, and in the midst an orange tree, 
which, they say, was on the place where Peter stood 
when he denied his Lord. 

A little south of this ruin is Neby Daua, or the 
Tomb of David, in all probability the place where the 




OLIVE TREE. 



kings were buried. Adjoining the tomb is the Csena- 
culum, or chamber of the last supper, and in this 
chamber even the place was pointed out to them where 
the table stood and the Lord sat. But more: it is also 
said that this is the room in which the disciples were 
gathered on the morning of the day of Pentecost when 
the Holy Ghost came upon them, and where, accord- 
10 



146 



The Pilgrims. 



ingly, the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ was founded 
— on the very site on which stood the "City of 
David." 

Uncle Joseph said that this tradition is strongly 
supported by the words of the apostle Peter in his 
sermon on the day of Pentecost, when he says: "Men 
and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the 
patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and 
his sepulchre is with us unto this day." 

At the place where they entered this enclosure 
there is a large gate in the high wall. In the large 
gate there is a quite small door, about twenty inches 
wide, and thirty inches high. This small door is called 
the " needle's eye." 

Rollin remarked that he had seen quite a large 
number of similar large gates with small doors in them. 
The guide informed them that they were all desig- 
nated as the "needle's jeve." 

On Zion our Pilgrims had a beautiful view down and 
over the valley of Hinnom, and the mountains beyond, 
down toward Bethlehem. This made the passage in 
Matt. 19: 24 very clear to Rollin. 

Over to the left, about half way up the hill toward 
the east, stands a lonely tree. Tradition says it is the 
one on which Judas hung himself. Near it are seen 
the ruins of the country residence of Caiaphas. 

Uncle Joseph said: "The plateau on which we are 
now, is supposed to be the Valley of Rephaim, through 
which run the dividing line between Judah and Benja- 
min, and where David defeated the Philistines; a little 
farther on we come to the Well of the Magi, out of 
which the weary travelers drew and drank, and whilst 



Superstitions. 



147 



so doing saw the star reflected in tne well, and then 
followed its guidance to where the child was. So 
says the tradition. To the right you see the plain 
descends, and down on its edge we can see the country 
residence of the Greek Patriarch amid groves of orna- 
mental and fruit trees. To the left, on the top of a 
small hill, beautifully situated, is the Greek Convent, 
Mar-Elyas (Convent of Elijah). 

"That mountain toward the southeast is Frank 
mountain, raising its top above the hills around and 
away beyond; in the east is seen the long blue range 
of the Mountains of Moab, beyond the Jordan." 

After our travelers returned to the inn, Rollin said: 
"Surely, Uncle Joseph, if Jerusalem was destroyed 
by Titus, how could all these places have been re- 
membered and preserved so exactly, as our guide in- 
formed us? I must believe that the most of them 
are only conjectures." 

"Indeed, Rollin," answered Uncle Joseph; "I am 
glad to see that you are not easily led by the super- 
stitions of these people. I would have mentioned 
something of this during the day, but I had faith 
enough in you that you could not be led to believe all 
that you heard. No doubt some of the places are 
correctly identified, but certainly very few of them. 
Josephus tells us that Titus razed the city to the 
ground. And it was hundreds of years before it was 
again built up and these places marked out. It is, 
indeed, sad to think of, that these sacred places where 
our Lord suffered and died, should have connected 
with them so much superstition and ignorance; and 
so much dependence upon them for salvation." 



1 48 



The Pilgrims. 



CHAPTER IX. 

Bethlehem — Church of the Nativitj' — Chapel of the Manger — 
Field of the Shepherds — Oriental Well — Pools of Solomon — 
Beads and Shells — Funeral — The Sam Wind — House of Pontius- 
Pilate — Bethany — Going to Jericho — The Dead Sea — Bathing in 
the Dead Sea 



On the following morning our Pilgrims started out 
for Bethlehem, which is about six miles from Jerusa- 
lem. On their way they came to the tomb of Rachel, 
Joseph's beloved wife, who is said to be buried "in 
the way," and this tomb really stands in the public 
way. 

Uncle Joseph told Rollin to refer to Genesis 35: 20,. 
who immediately drew out his pocket Bible and read: 
"And Rachel died and was buried in the way to 
Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. And Jacob set a pillar 
upon her grave; that is the pillar of Rachel's grave 
unto this day." 

Bethlehem was soon reached, and the hearts of the 
travelers were filled with delight in viewing the place 
made memorable to all Christian people as the birth- 
place of the Redeemer. Uncle Joseph said to Rollin:: 
"This place was once a celebrated city, formerly called 
also Ephrata; but as early as the time of Ruth bore 
its present name, signifying 'the house of bread'." 

As they entered the archway, or gate of Bethlehem, 
Rollin was much surprised, and expressed it in very 
emphatic terms. "Why, Uncle Joseph," he said,' "this 
place is reduced to a mere village! Is this the place 



15° 



The Pilgrims. 



in which the Lord was born ? Was it here that angels 
proclaimed Him, whom men reviled? What are all 
other places we have visited when compared to this 
humble, but decayed village?" 

"True," replied Uncle Joseph, "my dear boy, like 
you, my heart also exclaims, in the language of the 
prophet, 'And thou, Bethlehem, shalt be^chief among 
the cities of Judah.' But now let us hasten on to see 
the most important sights of this ancient village." 

Without much delay they resorted to the large 
structure containing the convent of the Latins, Greeks,, 
and Armenians, at the Eastern end of the town, where 
their wants were very kindly provided for, for which 
the party paid a handsome sum of money. From the 
convent they went over to the Church of the Nativity \ 
a little ways off, in the south side of the town. The 
church is a fine building containing five rows of mar- 
ble columns, each of a single stone, some of which are 
said to have once formed a part of the Temple at 
Jerusalem. The nave belongs in common to all 
Christians. 

The spot pointed out as the place of the Nativity is 
a grotto or cave in the rock under the church; that is, 
the church is built over the cave. It is necessary to> 
descend about fifteen feet down a stair-case, and enter 
a vault about thirty feet long and ten or twelve feet 
wide. Floor and wall are incased with marble. It is 
lighted by numerous lamps. A recess on one side of 
the grotto is the place where, it is said, the Saviour 
was born. Near it. under the altar, is a silver star, 
and around it the inscription: 
Hie De Virgine Maria Jesus Ghristus Natus est. 



Church of the Nativity. 



152 The Pilgrims. 

A number of lamps perpetually burn around it. Rollin 
believed this to be the place where Christ was born, 
and in his young heart there was formed a new pur- 
pose of living- a consecrated life. 

The party next visited the place or little Chapel of 
the Manger, and drew up as close as they could to 
where was the first resting-place of the Christ-child, 
in whose person the Son of God has come to us. 

They next hastily viewed the Altar of Magi, where 
the wise men of the East presented their gifts; then 
the Chapel of Joseph, where the angel appeared to 
him and commanded the flight into Egypt; next the 
altar under which are buried the Innocents, whom 
Herod murdered; and last the chapel and tomb of 
St. Jerome, who lived thirty years in this grotto of our 
Lord's nativity, and here translated the Scriptures. 
Finally the Field of the Shepherds was once more 
pointed out to them — a very lovely looking spot, about 
half a mile or so down in the valley, whereupon they 
made a few purchases for the loved ones at home. 

By this time they reached a number of ancient 
wells, and as the ride, with the dust of the way, had 
made them thirsty, they stopped to refresh themselves 
with a cooling drink. They were much surprised at 
the cool and delicious water drawn from the well. 

" Ah," said Uncle Joseph, "this reminds me of the 
time when David so earnestly desired to drink of these 
very springs, which still flow on, undisturbed by the 
trouble and curses which have changed the face of all 
things on the surface of this once favored land." 

The travelers now turned their .faces toward the 
celebrated pools of Solomon, which they found situ- 



Pools of Solomon, 



153 



ated in a very secluded place in the midst of moun- 
tains, about four miles south of Bethlehem. There 
are three in number, of a quadrangular form, cut out 
of the solid rock on the side of a hill. One is raised 
above the other, like a flight of steps, and so disposed 
that the water in the uppermost flows to the second, 
and thence to the third. Each may be about one 
hundred feet broad; and they evidently contained a 
great body of water, and were in a state of high 
preservation. 




BETHLEHEM. 



Rollin was very anxious to find out whether these 
pools contained fish, but as he had no fishing tackle 
with him, his ambition could not be gratified. 

Near these basins, or pools, were the ruins of a 
small edifice, which the guide asserted to have been a 
residence of Solomon, and he may have been right, 
as Solomon would naturally choose an occasional 
residence near a work planned with so much wisdom 



154 



The Pilgrims, 



as these cisterns displayed; especially as below them,, 
about half a mile, there is a deep valley enclosed by 
mountains, which is said to have been laid out by him 
in gardens. The local advantages, and the value of 
the reservoir of water to nourish the plants he would 
seek to support in this warm region, leaves us no 
reason to doubt that this now desolate place was in- 
deed once rich with all the beauties of vegetable life, 
and the scene of princely luxury. 

On returning to Bethlehem, they went up to the 
terrace, or top of the convent, and saw from thence a 
magnificent view, particularly the valley, where, no 
doubt, the angelic host announced the birth of the 
Saviour to the shepherds. Coming down from the 
terrace they entered a room in the convent, where 
many of the inhabitants entered for the purpose of 
selling beads, crosses, shells and stars, commemorative 
of the nativity. The prices were very high, but Rollin 
could not refrain from purchasing some of them as 
presents to his sisters. 

On the following morning our party witnessed a 
funeral, where a crowd of women were assembled 
making a loud howling over the dead, many of whom 
were hired to perform this part, agreeable to a very 
ancient custom repeatedly referred to in Holy Writ. 
Rollin hurried past this painful scene, inquiring of 
Uncle Joseph the route of the day, and learned that 
they were now on the way to the desert of John the 
Baptist. 

They again passed the tomb of Rachel and Ramah, 
where Samuel occasionally resided, and then traversed 
a wild country, passing that tract where the Assyrian 



156 



The Pilgrims. 



camp was visited by the terrible destruction recorded 
in the book of Kings. 

Rollin inquired: "In what manner was this mark 
of Divine judgment supposed to have operated so 
remarkably? " 

Uncle Joseph replied: "I have no doubt that it was 
by the pestilential blast, termed the sam wind by the 
Persians, the simoon or samiel by the Turks, and by 
the Prophet Jeremiah, the dry wind of the high places. 
It blows in Persia and the deserts of Arabia in June, 
July and August; in Nubia, both in Spring and 
Autumn; and in this country about the same period. 
It rarely lasts more than seven or eight minutes, but 
is so poisonous in its effects that it instantly suffocates 
all who inhale it. In 1658, twenty thousand men 
were killed by it in one night; and in 1655, four 
thousand persons were also its victims, as Thevenot 
informs us." 

"Dear Uncle," replied Rollin, "this is indeed a 
terrible characteristic of this favored land; but I sup- 
pose it can be foreseen, and the inhabitants have time 
for escape?" 

"Yes, it always moves in a line, about twenty yards 
in breadth, and about twelve above the surface of the 
earth. Travelers, when they perceive it in the desert, 
throw themselves on the ground, and lay their faces 
in the burning sands, and thus escape breathing the 
poisoned atmosphere, and their camels instinctively 
do the same; its appearance is indicated by a redness 
in the air, and the haze resembling the purple hue of 
the rainbow, but not so thick. If travelers escape its 
immediate effects, yet they never fail to suffer from it, 



Bethany. 



157 



as it dries up their skins of water, and you know that 
exposes them to perish with thirst in the desert, a 
most dreadful death. The effect of the simoon on 
the bodies of those who die from it, is peculiar; at 
first view its victims appear to be asleep, but if an 
arm or leg be shaken, or lifted up, it separates from 
the body, which soon becomes black. So dreadful 
are the effects upon vegetation, that the corn is some- 
times utterly destroyed." 

After a long and fatiguing day, Jerusalem was again 
reached, where the Pilgrims rested for the night. 
Uncle Joseph determined to lose no time in setting 
out for the Dead Sea; but before doing so, they called 
on the Governor of Jerusalem. 

It sounded very odd in the ears of our travelers to 
be told, ''that this personage lived in the house of 
Pontius Pilate," although they had heard it before; 
and when they set out, with all the consequences they 
could assume, they could not help expecting to see 
something extraordinary. They found the governor 
here, like that of Alexandria, in a very different state 
to that enjoyed by the powerful Roman on the same 
spot in old times, for he was in a miserable apartment 
of a dilapidated building, although surrounded by a 
formidable array of officers and soldiers. He sat 
cross-legged, tossing a string of beads to and fro in 
his hands; but after a short time he appeared interested 
in the travelers, and treated them with great civility. 

They left Jerusalem by the gate of St. Stephen, 
ascended the Mount of Olives, and on the other side 
of it passed the village of Bethany, where Jesus 
appeared to his disciples after his resurrection; and 



158 



The Pilgrims. 



not far distant were shown the ruins of a building, 
said to have been the habitation of St. Mark; but the 
place which awakened in them the greatest interest 
was the tomb of Lazarus. They first descended fifty 
or sixty feet under ground, and landed in a small, 
square space, where there appears to have been a com- 
munication with a church, which is now built up and 




BETHANY, 



converted into a mosque. In the wall of this apart- 
ment there is an aperture, or opening, of about three 
feet in breadth, formed by the raising of a large stone; 
through this they crept, and entered an arched vault, 
said to be the place where Lazarus lay when Jesus 
called him forth. Coming from this place they re- 
sumed their journey. 

In the course of their travels they observed many 
caves and grottos, inhabited by shepherds, showing 



Going to Jericho. 



159 



that the whole country was well calculated to afford 
shelter to rude and lawless hordes; and in many places 
the. whole scene exhibited a wilderness and picturesque 
grandeur. It brought to Rollins recollection our 
Lord's description of it, as the place where an individ- 
ual going to Jericho, encountered a band of robbers, 
for which, it seems, the road was always notorious. 

In the journey they came to an Arab plowing. 
Rollin went up to examine the plow. It consisted of 




PLOWING. 



two cross-poles of the rudest kind, with an iron point 
fixed to the lower and shorter end of one of the sticks, 
the upper and longer end of the same stick or pole 
composed the handle. The longer stick was attached 
by means of a rope or cord to the yoke. The yoke 
was simply a round pole, about five feet long, fastened 
on the neck of the oxen with cords. Any round stick 
of wood answers. The plow- man held the plow with 



i6o 



The Pilgrims. 



one hand, in the other hand he carried a stick about 
eight feet long, on the one end of which was a little 
iron spade for cleaning the plow, on the other an iron 
point, or goad, to urge on the oxen. 

At length they entered a desert, surrounded by high 
mountains, on one of which, it is recorded, that our 
Saviour was "tempted by the devil." Caverns and 
cells, may be seen in every part of it, where religious 
devotees frequently retire to spend a time in peni- 
tence, fasting, and prayer. 

A little way beyond the desert, the great plain of 
Jericho, and the surrounding country, burst at once 
upon the view, full of life and beauty — a land "of 
milk and honey," of corn, wine, vineyards and olives, 
stretched out to an immeasurable extent. The plain 
is in a semi-circle, and on the east, where the Jordan 
runs, it is bounded by the mountains of Pisgah, from 
which the children of Israel had the first view of this, 
their future country, and where Moses, their inspired 
leader, found his tomb. 

To the west there is another chain of mountains, at 
the foot of which stands Jericho. To the south the 
plain is wide and beautiful; and to the east lies the 
Dead Sea, in dark and awful silence. 

They entered Jericho in the decline of day, medita- 
ting on the many passages of Scripture which refer to 
this celebrated city. 

"Here," said Uncle Joseph, "stood the first place 
taken from the Canaanites. Joshua razed it to the 
ground, and cursed the person who should rebuild it. 
— a curse fulfilled upon Hiel, the Bethelite, who ven- 
tured to restore it." 



The Dead Sea. 



161 



"The most remarkable thing belonging to this 
place," returned Rollin, "was the miraculous purifica- 
tion of its waters by the Prophet Elisha, if we except 
the ministrations of our Lord. History tells us that 
at that time this city rivalled Jerusalem in its im- 
portance." 

Lodeinofs were secured for the night, it is true not 
very inviting, for every thing had the appearance of 
filthiness; yet, notwithstanding this, our travelers 
found refreshing rest, and rose in the morning ready 
to resume their journey. 

A heavy rain fell during the night, but they were 
determined to prosecute their journey. The dark and 
lowering sky above accorded with the prospect around 
them, which soon became gloomy and desolate. But 
the sky cleared, and they started across the plain 
toward the Dead Sea, glad to see the weather brighten 
and the prospect widen before them. 

But what was the prospect on which their eager 
eyes now looked, and from which their hearts recoiled? 
All around them lay every mark of desolation and 
utter sterility, as of a land under the immediate curse 
of God, and as being, what it really is, a monument 
of Divine justice, which must endure unchanged to 
the end of time. 

Before them the Dead Sea rolled its heavy waves 
before the wind, as if this were the termination of all 
created things, and that to advance nearer were to 
bid adieu to existence itself. 

Rollin was awed into silence whilst gazing on the 
scene. Uncle Joseph took occasion to say: "The 
bed of this sea is an immense caldron, forty miles in 
1 1 



l62 



The Pilgrims. 



length, and eight or nine miles in breadth; into which 
the Jordan and a dozen other streams, some of which 
are periodical, and others perennial, empty their waters. 
It, however, never overflows, though it has received 
their contributions for thousands of years. You see 




CAVE NEAR JERUSALEM. 



the steep ranges of mountains rise immediately on the 
shores of the sea, the western to the height of one 
thousand five hundred to two thousand feet; and the 
eastern to two thousand five hundred feet. It lies much 



The Dead Sea. 



163 



below the level of the Mediterranean, and this fact, in 
connection with its peculiar position between high 
ranges of hills, gives the heat of the sun so much 
power, that it evaporates during the day a quantity of 
water, equal to the influx from the Jordan and other 
streams. Sodom, Gomorrah, Adamah, and Zeboiim 
were overwhelmed in this sea, while the little Zoar 
was saved from destruction. Before the occurence 
of this dreadful judgment, the whole valley of the 
Jordan was characterized by altogether different pecu- 
liarities^ It was well watered everywhere, 'even as 
the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as 
thou comest unto Zoar/ 

''It is doubtful whither the Jordan ran, before this 
valley with its cities was submerged; as well as how 
far the catastrophe extended. Many similar questions 
might be asked, to which geology can give no definite 
reply. 

"This sea is called the Dead Sea, because nothing 
has been found alive in its waters. The name Asphal- 
tites, or Aspar, was given to it by the Greeks and 
Romans. 

"At the southern extremity of the Dead Sea is the 
valley of salt, a salt marsh or morass, in which many 
small springs rise; and, stagnating, render the whole 
neighborhood of the Dead Sea unhealthy. Above 
this marsh, on the western side of the lake, is the 
Khashme Usdum (Sodom ridge), a long, high hill, 
which is composed entirely of rock salt, which some- 
times appears on the sides of the hills in masses forty 
or fifty feet high, and several hundred feet in length. 
Towards the south this valley of salt is bounded by a 



The Dead Sea. 



165 



ranee of rueeed rocks, that are called in the Bible 
Acrabbim, or 'Scorpions.' Here David, and after- 
wards Amaziah, defeated the Edomites. On the 
south-eastern side of the lake, a promontory stretches 
up into it, and near the point where it leaves the east- 
ern range of mountains, is the little town Zoar. Below 
the marsh, and extending- from it to the Red Sea, a 
distance of eighty miles, is the valley, still called 
Arabah, in which Kadesh lies. The waters of the 
Arabah run down into the valley of salt, and about 
sixteen miles from the Red Sea, is the water-shed, 
where there is another salt marsh, beyond which the 
streams run south. If we suppose that the Dead Sea 
first appeared after the destruction of Sodom and 
Gomorrah, we must conclude also that there have 
been great alterations in the surface of the ground, 
which have extended not only from Mount Hermon 
to Akabah, but much farther. 

" About eight miles from the northern extremity of 
the Dead Sea, the valley of the Kidron opens into it. 
It comes down from Jerusalem as a narrow, rocky 
ravine, about twenty miles long. Midway between the 
city and the sea, the industry of the Greek monks 
produced, about one thousand five hundred years ago, 
a little paradise, called the convent of St. Saba, which 
is falsely regarded by some travelers as the Engedi 
of Solomon. It hang;s, like a swallow's nest, on the 
south side of the valley; and its houses, churches, 
chapels and towers rise one over another, like the 
tiles on the roof of a house. There are also a number 
of cells hewn in the sides of the rocks. Every spot 
where a little earth could be deposited, has been used 



i66 



The Pilgrims. 



by the inhabitants in the cultivation of a fruit-tree or 
a flower-garden. 

" The whole tract of land, sixty-five miles in length 
and ten or twelve miles broad, from the pass of Zeph- 
ath to the Quarantana mountains, is an entire wilder- 
ness. It bore the name of 'wilderness' during the 
most prosperous period of the Israelitish nation, and 
is now fully deserves it. Some tribes of Bedouins 
possess the land at present, and rove through it with 
their herds." 

Now silence, a deep and awful silence, the present 
sense of an avenging God fell upon Rollin. He 
thought of the time when this vast plain had doubtless 
been one sheet of fire, when burning lava had poured 
from the mountains as brimstone and fire, encrusting, 
burning, and consuming the guilty inhabitants of five 
populous cities; and in surrounding and covering the 
lingering wife of Lot, left her a monument of this 
awful judgment. 

The only signs of life on this accursed shore, which 
they could espy, were in a few locusts; and although, 
as the day now cleared, both Uncle Joseph and Rollin 
felt that every moment they spent on the spot increased 
the deep sense of awe and dismay it is so calculated 
to produce, They picked up many pieces of bitumen, 
as black as hard flint, and from which crosses are 
made in Jerusalem, which are supposed to be effica- 
cious as an antidote against the plague. 

The heat was great, but Rollin could not resist the 
temptation to bathe in the Dead Sea. Moreover, he 
wished to test the buoyancy of the water, so he threw 
away the umbrella, upon which most bathers rely, and, 



The Dead Sea. 



167 



disrobing, boldly waded in. He found that it is im- 
possible to sink in the water by throwing himself 
recklessly in with closed eyes. Not only was it im- 
possible to sink, but he could scarcely regain his 
footing, so lightly did he float on the surface. He 
had been warned about getting the water into his 
eyes or mouth, but could not help it. He could not 




ON THE DEAD SEA. 



eradicate the smart from his eyes, or the deadly taste 
from his mouth for a lone time. 

"Oh! how I hate the Dead Sea," he exclaimed, as 
he emerged, blinking and dripping from the water, 
and proceeded to scrape the saline incrustation from 
his body. 

But the worst sensation was an awful smarting and 
burning about his ankles, for he had now been some 



The Pilgrims. 



days in the saddle, and his ankles were somewhat 
chafed from wielding the spurs. The guide told of 
bringing forty-two cadets down to the Dead Sea once, 
who had poor animals, and had consequently become 
very sore from the long ride. They would bathe, and 
paid for the privilege, by walking all the ten miles 
back to Jericho. They were too sore to sit in the 
saddle. Rollin's hair proved to be very sticky for an 
hour or so. Nevertheless, there was no salt visible 
at the north end of the sea. It is at the south end, 
where there is no Jordan to partially purify the water, 
that the famed mountains of literal rock salt are to be 
seen. Ordinary sea water has about four per cent, 
of salt in it, while the Dead Sea has some twenty-six 
per cent. This percentage is fixed and steady, despite 
all that the Jordan and other streams can do to "heal 
the waters." 

They now, "with melancholy steps, and slow," re- 
traced their way across the dreary plain. So pestifer- 
ous are still the breezes of the Dead Sea, or so hateful 
the appearance of the place, that during their whole 
journey they observed no traces of human habitation, 
save in a few tents occupied by Arabs. 

Returning to Jericho, under the deep impression 
thus received, they thought it looked still worse than 
on the preceding night. 

"Is this," said Rollin, "the city of palms, the proud 
mistress of a fruitful domain, where Herod built a 
splendid palace, and where twelve thousand priests 
and Levites once dwelt? 'Alas! how are the mighty 
fallen ! ' — ' How is the land accursed for the wickedness 
of those that dwelt therein,' as the Scriptures declare." 



Good Friday. 



169 



CHAPTER X. 

Back to Jerusalem — Good Frida}- — The Services — The Dark 
Night — Tombs of the Kings — Scapus — Gibeah — Salutations — 
Rizpah — Mizpah — Pool of Gibeon — Bethel — Bock Rimman — 
Shiloh. 



On the following day the Pilgrims returned again 
to Jerusalem, for the purpose of seeing the ceremonies 
of Good Friday, at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, 
on Mount Calvary. In the evening they went out to 
the church, and were conducted to the refectory, 
where supper was served; after which they were 
shown to separate cells, where they laid down in their 
clothes to rest for the night. At three o'clock in the 
morning they were called to attend the .matins, or 
morning prayers, and they accordingly accompanied 
the friars in the procession to the chapel, which is 
built over the supposed sepulchre of Jesus, in the 
centre of the large building. Rollin was very much 
interested in the proceedings, and began at this early 
hour to note down the scenes of the day. 

The monks followed each other, walking slowly, 
holding lighted candles, and singing a low, solemn 
dirge, accompanied by the deep notes of the organ, 
which, aided by the remembrance that they were in- 
deed near the spot where the Redeemer of the world 
had been once laid, had a powerful effect upon their 
minds. 




CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 



Church of the Holy Sepulchre. 1 7 r 



The church in which they now were, is about two 
hundred and fifty feet long, and one hundred and fifty 
wide; being built on the mount, it was found necessary 
to cut away the ground in some places, and raise it in 
others, but especial care was taken that the part on 
which it is supposed that the crucifix of our Saviour 
really stood, should not be touched, in consequence 
of which this spot is considerably higher than the 
floor of the church. This sacred place is from twenty 
to thirty yards square, is gaudily ornamented, and has 
an altar before it, on which lamps are continually 
burning. The tomb itself, which was at one time a 
cave under ground, may be considered as above ground 
at present, the rock round it having been removed. 

The general form of the church, considering where 
it is founded, may be termed magnificent, the Corinth- 
ian order of architecture prevails in it. It is of a cir- 
cular form, having a heavy dome, formed of the cedar 
of Lebanon; but the light received from .the top is 
not sufficient to prevent it from being gloomy. Around 
it are cells for Christians of all nations, but a tax is 
rigidly levied for their visits by the Turks, amounting, 
it is said, to two hundred and fifty thousand piastres 
(about $20,000) per annum. On entering the church, 
the first object which attracts attention is a marble 
slab, marking the spot where it is supposed Joseph 
of Arimathea anointed the body of our Lord, before 
he laid it in the sepulchre. On the north side stands 
the tomb of Godfrey of Bouillon, with an inscription, 
testifying his conquest of the city. 

Over the tomb there is a building, partly circular 
and oblong, paved with marble, and hung with cur- 



172 



The Pilgrims. 



tains of crimson and gold. Many splendid lamps are 
here kept burning-, and the place is divided into two 
apartments, each about six feet square. The one is a 
kind of anti-chapel; to the other, which is called 
Sanctum Sanctorum, "the place where the Lord lay;" 
over the altar, commemorative of this spot, is a large 
painting of the ascension. The doors to this place 
were so low that even Rollin was obliged to stoop 
in entering. 

The number of pilgrims which crowd to this spot 
at all times is very great, but at this season there were 
an extraordinary number, so that it was with difficulty 
that our travelers could get in at all. 

On the outside of this sacred edifice a considerable 
traffic is kept up for beads and crosses. 

On the evening of Good Friday, which the monks 
denominate the Dark Ni°fht, during the sermon the 
lights were extinguished, in reference to the super- 
natural darkness which took place at the time of the 
crucifixion. A procession again was made, each per- 
son carrying a lighted taper, having a crucifix borne 
before them, on which an image of our Saviour, as 
large as life, was attached by nails in the hands, with 
a crown of thorns on the head, and the body marked 
with blood. After proceeding to those particular 
parts of the church deemed most sacred, at length 
they arrived at the supposed Mt. Calvary, and ascended 
without shoes. The cross is now erected, a sermon 
delivered, and a hymn sung; after which two persons, 
representing Joseph of Arimathea, and Nicodemus, 
approach the place with great solemnity, draw the 
nails, and take down the effigy, which is so contrived 



Chapel of the Holy Cross. 



173 




174 



The Pilgrims. 



that the limbs are flexible, as if it were a real body. 
This is laid in a sheet, and taken to the grave, where 
it is anointed with spices, and the ceremony concludes 
by depositing it in the sepulchre. 

Having satisfied their curiosity as to these ceremo- 
nies, and visited every place of interest, save the 
tombs of the kings, they proceeded to view them 
also, preparatory to their final departure from a place 
endeared to them beyond all they ever hoped to see 
again, by having awakened in their minds the sublim- 
est emotions, and the most affecting recollections. 

They found these magnificent remains much the 
most important voucher to the former greatness of 
Jerusalem, than anything indicative of fallen grandeur 
which they have been able to trace, as they evidently 
bore marks of Egyptian power and splendor. The 
entrance is by a large, open court; to the west is the 
mouth of a cavern, over which is a portico, hewn out 
of the rock, adorned with sculpture not much defaced. 
On entering it they turned to the left, and descended 
to the mansions of the dead, by creeping with difficulty 
through a passage almost blocked up by rubbish. 
The party carried lighted tapers, and at length found 
a range of subterraneous chambers, in each of which 
were receptacles for dead bodies, which appear to 
have been deposited in coffins of stone. In the cen- 
ter of one chamber was a pool of water. These ex- 
cavations are universally ascribed to David; but there 
is no positive evidence on the subject. Uncle Joseph 
observed, " that as David had not been permitted to 
build the temple, he thought it extremely probable 
that he had employed the people and the treasure he 



Gibeah. 



175 



wished to have devoted to that purpose in a work 
like the present." 

From Jerusalem our travelers headed for Bethel 
and Shiloh; but before reaching Bethel they must 
pass through Gibeah and Ramah. 

They ascended to the summit of Scopus, paused a 
moment to take a farewell view of Jerusalem, and 
then pushed on to Nob, a small hill on the right. It 
was hither that David fled from Saul, and obtained 
the hallowed bread and his own sword from Ahimel- 
ech, the priest, by means of assurance of continuance 
for three whole days. The twenty-first and twenty- 
second chapter of 1st Samuel tell how David then 
fled to Gath, feigned madness, and finally took refuge 
in the cave of Adullham; while Saul hearing of the 
succor which Ahimelech had given his enemy, repaired 
to Nob, and there slew the whole eighty-five priests, 
and every living creature, man or beast, in the city. 
Our travelers saw no traces whatever of the destroyed 
city, and nobody appeared to live in the vicinity. 

Just beyond Nob was the site of Gibeah — similarly 
deserted. This was interesting, as the birth-place 
and early home of Saul. Here occurred the outrage 
upon the Levite, and the vengeance exacted by the 
children of Israel. Only 600 of the Benjaminites who 
occupied the city escaped, and they took refuge at 
Rock Rimmon. 

Two miles further, and still on the left, they passed 
the modern village, which occupies the site of the 
most important of the ancient Ramahs. How inter- 
esting this made the story of Samuel and Saul ! Liv- 
ing thus but a couple of miles apart, the two must 



176 



The Pilgrims. 



have met before the shepherd boy came to consult 
the seer with regard to the whereabouts of his father's 
lost asses. Perhaps they had often exchanged Ori- 
ental salutations, neither dreaming how the future w T as 
to bring them together. The lad was royally fed, 
slept on the house-top, and then, as the two walked 
down the hill together, the prophet produced his vial 
of oil, anointed the wondering youth, and sent him 

away with instructions 
where to find the asses. 
It would appear that Saul's 
family were sojourning at 
Bethlehem at this time. 

Roll in was now very 
enthusiastic, and made 
many inquiries of Uncle 
Joseph and the guide. 
The guide, who was quite 
intelligent, replied: "The 
proximity of Ramah and Gibeah suggests a most inter- 
esting theory. Saul had slain many of the Gibeonites, 
who dwelt in a neighboring city ; and the Gibeonites, in 
revenge, craved of David the death of Saul's posterity,, 
barring only Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan. 
Accordingly, David delivered up the two sons of Saul 
by his w T ife Rizpah, and his five grandsons, born unto 
Adriel and Michal. These seven were handed in 
Gibeah of Saul at the beginning of the barley harvest. 

"And Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah, took sack-cloth 
and spread it for her upon the rock, from the begin- 
ning of harvest until water dropped upon them out 
of heaven, and suffered neither the birds of the air to 




SALUTATIONS. 



Gibeah, 



177 



rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by 
night. 

"These were characteristic Oriental symbols of 
grief. Michal did not apparently take her loss to 
heart so profoundly as did Rizpah. 

"To my mind, it was this incident that Jeremiah 
referred to when he wrote: 'A voice was heard in 
Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping; Rachel 
weeping for her children, refused to be comforted for 
her children, because they were not.' Matthew evi- 
dently regarded the slaughter of the innocents by 
Herod as the fulfilment of Jeremiah, and, accordingly, 
everybody has accepted that theory. But I think this 
incident is the natural reference." 

"But how could Rachel, weeping in Gibeah, be 
heard in Ramah?" responded Rollin. 

"Ah, very easily. Not only could she have been 
heard, but what she said might have been understood. 
This valley, which lies between the two places, is 
admirably adapted to preserve the sound. Indeed, I 
have stood at Gibeah and heard a man in Ramah 
shout over to a man on a donkey back near me, and 
give him certain instructions in a matter of business. 
I understood everything perfectly. Oriental grief is 
noisy and violent. This story of Rizpah's grief may 
have been a prefigure of a slaughter by Herod, but I 
feel sure that it was what Jeremiah had in mind par- 
ticularly." 

As the travelers neared Gibeah, Uncle Joseph said: 

"With Gibeah and Ramah so close together, not over 

a mile apart, there is a pathos in the last two verses 

of the fifteenth chapter of 1st Samuel, contrasting 
12 



1 7 8 



The Pilgrims. 



painfully with the brighter scenes between Samuel 
and Saul, before the latter had begun to do evil. 
'Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to 
his house to Gibeah of Saul. And Samuel came no 
more to see Saul, until the day of his death; never- 
theless Samuel mourned for Saul.' * * * Xo doubt 
they often met, but Samuel no more visited him. 

"Samuel died, and was buried in his own house at 
Ramah. The spot is unmarked and unknown. In- 
deed, some of the priests have located a tomb else- 
where, right in contradiction of ist Samuel 15, 1. 
It is a curious fact that after Saul's melancholy death, 
on the mountains of Gilboa, his and his sons' bodies 
were first taken to Bethshan and fastened to the wall 
there, then removed to Jabesh-Gilead, beyond Jordan, 
burned and buried under a tree, and finally brought 
back by David to Zelah, or Zelzah, in Benjamin, a 
village opposite Rachel's tomb, and there to be 
interred with the dust of Kish, Saul's father, opposite 
the spot to which Samuel had directed Saul to go and 
find the lost asses. 

" But in contemplating these interesting localities 
on the left, we must not forget two scarcely less 
important places on the right. 

"Mizpah is distinct from Gibeah. Mizpah, or Neby 
Samivil, has been in sight from the time we left Jeru- 
salem. It is the highest point of land for many miles 
around, and is much visited by travelers for the sake 
of the view which it commands. If we had the time 
to spare, we would visit it, but we must hasten on. 
Here the children of Israel were wont to gather for 
mass meetings from Dan to Beersheba. What thrill- 



Pool of Gibeon. 



179 



ing scenes the old 'watch-tower' has witnessed! 
Here Samuel gathered the people and gave unto them 
Saul for a king. It was a different Saul then that hid 
himself bashfully amid the huzzas of the populace, 
from the vindictive, spoiled monarch that finally 
suicided on Gilboa. 

4 'This Mizpah is not to be confused with the Mizpah 
of Moab, beyond Jordan, mentioned in Genesis 15; 
Judges 11; and 1 Samuel 22. 

" Beyond Mizpah a few miles, lies Gibeon, which 
is quite wealthy in Biblical associations. Here it was 
that Solomon sacrificed, and being promised of God 
any gift for which he might apply, chose wisdom, and 
received 'wisdom, and riches, and honor.' How hard 
to believe that a career, so glorious in its inception, 
should end in such vile and ignominious apostasy! 
It was the Gibeonites that did work wilily with Joshua. 
Over Gibeon it afterwards was, perhaps with a reason, 
that Joshua commanded the sun to stand still. A 
part of the penalty prescribed for these Gibeonites for 
their clever stratagem was, that they should be 'hew- 
ers of wood.' Evidently the modern Gibeonites are 
still under the judgment; do you see that long line of 
men and women carrying great bundles on their 
l>acks?" The travelers looked in the direction that 
Uncle Joseph pointed, and saw a large company of 
men and women carrying loose bundles. It is the 
worst kind of drudgery when the way is steep and 
rocky. Similarly, water-carrying is a great, though 
necessary hardship in many parts of Palestine. 

Among the attractions of Gibeon is the Pool of 
Gibeon, beside which the twelve Benjaminites of Ish- 



i8o 



The Pilgrims. 



bosheth, and the twelve servants of David "rose up 
to play," and fell in a common death-grip, as related in 
the second chapter of 2 Samuel. There are also two 
other references to this lake or pool: Jeremiah 41, 12; 
and Joshua 18, 14. 

Bethel was a village embowered in vineyards, and 
fig and pomegranate orchards. Our travelers reined 
up under some quite luxurious fig-trees, near the vast 
remains of an ancient pool or reservoir, and partook 
of a lunch. 

"What an interesting history Bethel has had," ex- 
claimed Rollin. "It begins way back in the twelfth 
chapter of Genesis, where we read that Abraham 
pitched his tent upon the mountain just to the east of 
the city — which was then called Luz. Something 
like four hundred years afterward Jacob slept on the 
ground there with a stone for a pillow — just as Orien- 
tals sometimes do to-day — and experienced that won- 
derful vision, in view of which he named the place 
Bethel, 'the house of God.' Afterward Jacob and 
Rachel had their home in Bethel. Alas! Bethel 
ceased to be the 'House of God,' and under the 
infamous Jeroboam we read of it as one of the cities 
where a golden calf was set up in order to wean the 
people from God. A few centuries later Joshua 
purged Bethel, obliterating all traces of Jeroboam's 
altar and idolatrous images." 

Rollin, w T ho had by this time become thoroughly 
absorbed in the study of the manners and customs of 
the people, said to his Uncle: "I believe, dear Uncle, 
that the Bible gives us the earliest notice on the sub- 
ject of writing that is anywhere to be found. Moses, 



Writing', 



181 



we are told, received the two tables of the covenant 
on Mount Sinai, written with the finger of God; and 
before that Moses himself was not ignorant of the use 
of letters (Exod. 24: 4; 17: 14). There is, therefore, 
much reason to believe that the art of writing was 
understood among the Jews while other nations were 
yet without it, and that from them it has passed into 
all other countries, and been handed down to our own 
times. Hence the alphabets of all languages, that 
have ever been written, present a striking conformity 

with the ancient alphabet 
of that people, whether 
we consider the number of 
their letters, their names, 
their sounds, their order, 
or the original forms to 
which they may be traced 
backward. Some refer 
the origin of writing to the 
time of Moses; others, to 
that of Abraham; while a still different opinion throws 
it back to the ag-e of Adam himself." 

To this Uncle Joseph replied: "Yes, my boy, you 
are right in saying that there are differences of opin- 
ion as to the origin of writing; and perhaps we may 
never know when the art of writing was acquired. 
Perhaps it w r ould be of interest for you to know more 
about ancient books and w T ritin£." 

To this Rollin responded: "O, yes, by all means, 
Uncle Joseph, give me all the information that you 
can on this interesting subject, as I am so anxious to 
know more about it." 




182 



The Pilgrims. 



Uncle Joseph replied: "Several sorts of material 
were anciently used in making books. Plates of lead 
or copper, the bark of trees, brick, stone and wood 
were originally employed to engrave such things and 
documents upon is men desired to transmit to poster- 
ity (Deut. 27: 2, 3; Job 19: 23, 24). God's laws were 
written on stone tablets. Inscriptions were also made 
on tiles and bricks, which were afterwards hardened 
by fire. Many of these are found in the ruins of 
Babylon. Tablets of wood, box, and ivory were com- 
mon among the ancients; when they were of wood 
only, they were oftentimes coated over with wax, 
which received the writing inscribed on them with the 
point of a style, or iron pen (Jer. 17: 13), and what 
was written mia-ht be effaced with the broad end of a 
style ( Luke 1 : 63). Afterwards, the leaves of the 
palm- tree were used instead of wooden tablets, and 
also the finest and thinnest bark of trees, such as the 
lime, the ash, the maple, the elm: hence the word 
liber, which denotes the inner bark of trees, signifies 
also a book. As these barks were rolled up, to be 
more readily carried about, the united rolls were called 
volumen, a. volume; a name given likewise to rolls of 
paper or of parchment. The ancients wrote also* 
on linen. But the oldest material commonly employed 
for writing upon, appears to have been the papyrus, 
a reed very common in Egypt and other places, and 
still found in Sicily and Chaldea. From this comes 
our word paper. 

4 'At a later period, parchment from skins was 
invented in Pergamos, and was there used for rolls or 
volumes. The several pieces, or leaves, were joined 



Writing. 



183 



one to another, so as to make a single long sheet from 
the beginning to the end. This was then rolled round 
a stick; or, if it was very long, round two sticks, 
beginning at each end, and rolling till they met in the 
middle. When any person wanted to read, he un- 
rolled it to the place he wished, and when he was 
done, rolled it up again. Hence, books of every size 
were called rolls. The roll was commonly written 
only on one side; that which was given to Ezekiel, in 

vision, was written 
on both, within and 
without (Ezek. 2 : 
10). From this ac- 
count of the ancient 
books, it is easy 
to understand how 
hey might be 
aled, either once 
or a number of 
times, so that a new 
seal might have to 
be opened, after 
unrolling and reading a part, before the reader could 
proceed to the remainder. 

" There is in the public library at Cambridge, Eng- 
land, an ancient manuscript roll of the Pentateuch. 
It is made of goats' skins dyed red, and measures 
forty-eight feet in length by about twenty-two inches 
in breadth. As the book of Leviticus and a part of 
Deuteronomy are wanting, it is calculated that the 
original length could not have been far from ninety 
feet. It consists of thirty-seven different skins, and 




BOOK-CASE. 



The Pilgrims. 



contains one nundred and seventeen different columns 
of writing. 

"Ancient rolls were sometimes encased in a cover, 
which was more or less ornamented, and on which the 
title was sometimes written. This case corresponded 
to the envelopes in which their letters were put. 

"Epistolary correspondence seems 
to have been little practiced among 
the ancient Hebrews. Some few let- 
ters are mentioned in the Old Testa- 
ment (2 Sam. 11: 14; Ezra 4: 8). 
They were conveyed to their destina- 
tion by friends or travelers (Jer. 29: 3), 
or by royal couriers (2 Chron. 30: 6; 
Esth. 8: 10). The letter was usually 
in the form of a roll, the last fold be- 
letters. j n g. p astec [ down. They were sealed 
(1 Kings 21: 8), and sometimes wrapped in an envel- 
ope, or in a bag of costly materials and highly orna- 
mented. To send an . = ^ _ 



open letter was ex- 
pressive of contempt 
(Neh. 6: 5). In the 
New Testament we 
have numerous exam- 
ples of letters, from 
the pens of apostles. 

"The ink of the ancients was usually composed of 
lampblack, soot, or pulverized charcoal, prepared with 
gum and water. It was sold in small particles or 
grains. When needed for use some of the grains 
were put into the inkhorn, and mixed with water until 





WETTING MATERIALS. 



i86 



The Pilgrims. 



the mixture became of the consistence of our modern 
printer's ink. It was of an intense glossy black, 
retaining its color for a^es, vet easily obliterated with 
sponge and water. This is thought to be referred to 
in Num. 5: 23. and Col. 2: 14. The ink still used in 
the East is mostly of this character. 

"There were two sorts of pens. One was of iron, 
for use on metallic or waxed plates, the other was a 
reed pointed in the same manner as the quill pens of 
modern times, though not usually slit. This was used 
with the ink for -writing on parchment, or papyrus. 

"It is still customary in this country to put into a 
girdle the case containing writing implements. It 
consists of two parts, a receptacle for the pens, and a 
box for the ink. It is sometimes made of ebony or 
some other hard wood, but generally of metal — brass, 
copper, or silver — often highly polished and of exqui- 
site workmanship. It is about nine or ten inches 
long, one and a half or two inches wide, and half an 
inch deep. The hollow shaft contains pens of reed 
and a penknife, and has a lid. To the upper end of 
this case the inkstand is soldered if of metal. This is 
a small box. either square or round; has a lid which 
moves on hinges, and fastens with a clasp. It is 
usually twice as heavy as the shaft. The projection 
of the inkstand is seen outside the girdle, while the 
shaft is concealed by its folds." 

An uneventful ride of perhaps fifteen miles now 
followed, for the most part through a superlatively^ 
desolate country. 

To the right, a short distance north of Rock Rim- 
mon, they caught a single glimpse of Ophra or Eph- 



Rock Rimmon. 



i8 7 



raim, whither our Lord went after the raising of 
Lazarus; also mentioned in connection with Bethel in 
2 Chronicles 13: 19. 

Another detour through a fine fig grove and a plain, 
brought them to the then desolated site of Shiloh. 
The curse of the prophets rested heavily upon Shiloh 
for the apostasy of the people. Jeremiah was partic- 
ularly fond of pointing to its fate when he was inveigh- 
ing against popular iniquity in any place. To the 
modern pilgrim the curse is indeed palpable. No 
soul lives where the city was, and the vicinity is dan- 
gerous, by reason of robbers. Two or three vener- 
able foundations remain, but no structure remains 
intact. 

Our Pilgrims drew up under the one solitary tree in 
the place, near a choked well, and reviewed the history 
connected with the place. "Here it was," said Uncle 
Joseph, "that the Tabernacle was first permanently 
set up in the presence of the whole congregation, 
after it had been brought west from Gilgal. Here, 
also, the inheritances were divided by Lot, at the door 
of the Tabernacle; Eleazar the priest, Joshua, and the 
heads of the tribes officiating. After the sacking of 
Gibeah the children of Israel made a vow that the six 
hundred Benjaminites who had escaped unto the Rock 
Rimmon, should not have of their daughters for 
wives. Relenting in part, afterwards, they went over 
to Jabesh Gibeah, beyond the Jordan, slew all the 
men and married women, and in this way succeeded 
in getting four hundred virgins for wives. But there 
was still a deficit of two hundred wives, and all felt 
that that deficit ought to be provided for. Accord- 



1 88 



The Pilgrims. 



ingly a scheme was hit upon. At the time of the 
annual feast in Shiloh, the Benjaminites did 'lie in 
wait in the vineyards,' and when the daughters of 
Shiloh came forth to dance, each man captured the 
bride of his fancy.' This idea of capturing a wife is 
eminently Oriental, and may have once prevailed all 
over the world, as it does in some countries still. 
The Israelites smoothed over all complaints, and thus 
the problem was happily solved." 



Ca m el Ba nds. 1 8 9 



CHAPTER XL 

Start for Shechera — Camel Bands— Nablus — Mt. Gerizim — Sabbath 
Services — Jacob's Well — Ebal — Samaria — J enin — Esdraelon — 
Tabor— Napoleon's Battle —Nazareth — The Carpenter Shop. 



In the morning of the next day, our Pilgrims 
started for the town of Shechem, with the hope of 
reaching it and resting there over the Sabbath-day. 
They had not proceeded far, until a jingling sound 
arose on the air, and they found that at a short dis- 
tance a long band of camels, heavily laden, was going 
before them, each having a bell tied around his neck. 
These useful creatures, when laden, utter a particular 
groan, understood perfectly by the drivers, when they 
become aware that the burden is as great as they can 
bear; nor will they proceed a single step till the pres- 
sure is removed, if too much has been laid upon them. 
They kneel down to receive their load and their riders,, 
and are generally submissive and meek in their de- 
meanor; nevertheless, they long retain the memory 
of any offence, and it is found necessary to keep the 
jaw of each firmly muzzled by a chain or rope, by 
which they are also led by their keepers. The females 
give milk continually, which renders them particularly 
valuable, as we find even in the time of Jacob. She- 
chem was reached in the evening, without anything 
occurring of particular note during the day. 



190 



The Pilgrims. 



Rollin remarked: "Ancient Sheehem, rendered 
famous in Old Testament history by a variety of 
deeply interesting circumstances, Is in the 4th chapter 
of the Gospel by St. John known as Sychar." 

"This name," replied Uncle Joseph, "seems to have 
been a nickname, perhaps from sheker, 'falsehood,' 




SHECHEM. 



spoken of idols in Hab. 2: 18; or from shikkai', 
'drunkard,' in allusion to Isa. 38: 1, 7, — such as the 
Jews were fond of imposing upon places they dis- 
liked; and nothing could exceed the enmity which ex- 
isted between them and the Samaritans, who possessed 
Sheehem. Stephen, however, in his historical retro- 
spect, used the proper and ancient name — Acts 7: 16. 

"Not lone after the times of the New Testament, 
the place received the name of Neapolis, which it still 



Jacob's Well 



retains in the Arabic form, Nablus, being- one of 
the very few names in Palestine which have sur- 
vived to the present day. It had probably suffered 
much, if it was not completely destroyed, in the 
war with the Romans; and would seem to have 
been rebuilt by Vespasian, and then to have taken 
this new name; for the coins of the city (of which 
there are many) all bear the inscription, 4 Flavia 
Neapolis,' the former epithet, no doubt, derived from 
Flavius Vespasian. 

" There had already been converts to the Christian 
faith, under our Saviour, and it is probable a church had 
been gathered here by the Apostles. Justin Martyr 
was a native of Neapolis. The name of Germanus, 
Bishop of Neapolis, occurs in A. D. 314, and other 
bishops continue to be mentioned down to A. D. 535, 
when the bishop John signed his name at the Synod 
of Jerusalem. 

"The Moslems, the Crusaders, and the Saracens 
have each in turn been its masters. It was finally 
taken from the Christians in A. D. 1242, by Abu Ali, 
and has remained in Moslem hands ever since. 

" There is no reason to question that the present 
town occupies the site of the ancient Shechem. The 
town itself is long and narrow, extending along the 
northeast base of Mount Gerizim, and partly resting 
on its declivity, as you no doubt have noticed. The 
streets are narrow, the houses high, and, in general, 
well built, all of stone, with domes upon the roofs, as 
at Jerusalem. The population of the place is esti- 
mated by Dr. Olin at 8,000 or 10,000, of whom 500 
or 600 are Christians of the Greek communion, and 



192 



The Pilgrims. 



the rest Moslems, with the exception of about 15a 
Samaritans, and one-third that number of Jews." 

After spending the Sabbath in rest and meditation, 
on Monday morning- the travelers went out into the 
beautiful valley, the scene of many events referred to 
in the Scriptures; the most attractive object was a 
well of " living water," called so in distinction from 




near Jacob's well. 



* 

that of the lakes, which are considered silent and 
dead. It is at the side of the road, to the right, and 
from it a pure stream of about four feet wide is seen 
to flow towards the city of Samaria. 

Expectant and worshipful, almost trembling, our 
travelers now repaired to the place sacred and dear 



Jacob's Well. 



193 



to the hearts of all who know and believe the Scrip- 
tures — Jacob's Well, the well which the patriarch con- 
structed, and out of which he and his children drank, 
as did also his flocks and herds; the well at which 
the Lord Jesus Christ, our Saviour, the God-man, on 
a hot Summer-day sat down to rest whilst the dis- 
ciples went to the city to buy meat, and where, in the 




THE WOMAN AT THE WELL. 



meanwhile, a woman came to fetch water, to whom 
and to many more of the Samaritans he gave of the 
water of eternal life. The well is quite a distance 
from the present city, to the eastward, on the plain. 
On the surface there is a place wider than the well it- 
self, of a depth of about eight feet. Into this they 
descended, and Rollin took out his Bible, and 
read first the history of the well, and then the 4th 

13 



194 



The Pilgrims. 



chapter of John. Hereupon followed an appropriate 
conversation, and a silent prayer. It was a - blessed 
hour, never to be forgotten. 

u Ah! here is the well, undoubtedly," said Rollin, 
"where our Lord conversed with the woman of Sama- 
ria. The works of man may change and deceive us, 
but those of God change not, 

"In the Gospel by John we have one of the most 
interesting of the New Testament narratives: 'And 
He must needs o-o through Samaria. Then cometh 
He to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near 
to the parcel of ground Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 
Now Jacob's Well was there. * ** * There com- 
eth a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said 
unto her: 'Give Me to drink.'" 

"You are right, my dear boy,'' replied Uncle Joseph, 
4 'but I apprehend that the city at that time was much 
nearer to the well than it appears to be now. Sama- 
ria, in our Saviour's time, was doubtless a fine city, 
for Herod enlarged it considerably, built a temple 
there in honor of Augustus, and o-ave it the name of 
Sebaste," 

After drinking of the well, and recollecting that 

o o 

this was the ground given by Jacob to Joseph, they 
traveled onward, passing in their way a small build- 
ing, between two mountains, which marks the' place 
where the bones of Joseph were laid. 

After partaking of refreshments, the horses were 
brought forth for the ascent of Mount Gerizim. The 
ascent was made from the western limits of the city. 
The pathway in some places is rough and steep. 
They passed some small fields of grain, and several 



Sam aria. 



l 95 



flocks of sheep and goats. Up towards the summit 
the party came on a plateau of considerable extent, 
and a little further on to the sacred place of the Samari- 
tans, where they annually hold the passover after the 
Mosaic ritual. In a few minutes more the summit of 
the mountain was reached. They were now about 
3,000 feet above the level of the sea, and on a large 




RUINS OP SAMARIA. 



open space, on one end of which were the ruins of an 
immense structure, probably of a Roman castle. In 
the very thick walls were stone blocks of great size. 
Near by were massive stones, said to be those brought 
up from Jordan by the Israelites, and erected at Gilgal 
as a memorial. Another rock, not far away, was 
designated by the Samaritans as the altar of their 
great temple, which also is in ruins. These Samari- 



196 



The Pilgrims. 



tans further contend that here, where their temple 
stood, Abraham offered Isaac, and here also stood 
Jacob's ladder. Uncle Joseph said: "It is unessential, 
whether we believe it or not. To us the place is 
precious, because of the exquisite view it affords us 
over more than the entire breadth and nearly the 

whole lengfth of the land of Israel. Toward the west 

<_> 

the eye reaches far into the Great Sea, eastward away 
beyond the Jordan, and from Dan in the north, at the 
foot of the Great Hermon, down south on the moun- 
tains of Judea, well nigh to Beersheba. At our feet 
lies the plain of Makhna, bordered by the mountains 
of Samaria, presenting a charming panorama. Whilst 
thus viewing' the land, its varied history from Abraham 
to the present day, in panoramic succession, passed 
before our mind's eye. What a grand little country 
this must have been in the times of the favors of 
Jehovah ! " 

After feasting their eyes on the beautiful scenery, 
the party descended by a nearer but also steeper path 
into the valley, where Joshua had brought together 
the people, according to Deut. 11: 29, and 27: 12, 13, 
to hear the blessings pronounced from Gerizim, and 
the curses from Ebal. Right there the party halted, 
and sent Rollin up to the "Pulpit" on Gerizim, where 
the ancient proclaimer, as is believed, had taken his 
position to read Joshua 8: 33-35. He went up, he 
read in a natural tone, and the party down in the val- 
ley heard and distinctly understood ever)* word, 
thoueh at the time a strone west wind was blowing 
down the valley. And so the entire party were con- 
vinced that everything recorded in the Scripture pas- 



Samaria. 



197 



sage quoted could and did happen just as reported, 
without any miraculous interposition, the two moun- 
tains serving to one another as most effective sound- 
ing-boards. 

One of the principal at- 
tractions of Xablous is the 
famous Samaritan Temple, 
or rather the ruins of it. 
The Samaritans worshiped 
on Gerizim, and according- 
ly had their temple there. 
Gerizim was the "this 
mountain" to which Christ 
referred in His talk with 
the woman, and, doubtless, 
he saluted it with a gesture 
as He spoke. 

Our Pilgrims found the 
existing foundations of the 
temple to be six feet thick, 
and in some places fifteen 
feet high. The stones were 
plain, but bevelled. In a 
room in the temple a priest 
exhibited an ancient copy 
of the pentateuch for a gen- 
erous bestowal of money. 

The Codex is written in 
Samaritan characters on 
parchment, most carefully 
wrapped in two pieces of crimson satin, and sacredly 
preserved in a case covered with wrought silk. The 




SAMARITAN PENTATEUCH. 



The Pilgrims. 



Samaritans claim it was written by a grandson of 
Aaron, and is 3,472 years old. It is certainly of 
great age, and one of the greatest Bibliographical 
curiosities. 

The celebrated Samaritan Pentateuch is the oldest 
manuscript of which we have an}" knowledge. It con- 
sists of twenty-one skins of unequal size, most of which 
contain six, but some only five columns. The columns 
are thirteen inches deep and seven and a half wide. 
Each contains from seventy to seventy-two lines, and 
the entire roll has one hundred and ten columns. 

A brook runs along the valley west of the city, 
leaving a ribbon of verdure in its wake. The olive 
trees that grow on the hill-sides are overgrown with 
mistletoe. The southern slopes of Ebal are covered, 
with coarse cactuses. In the western suburbs are the 
ruins of old Roman mills, operated by the stream 
referred to; Roman aqueducts and other witnesses 
to the Italian civilization which prevailed in the early 
part of the Christian era. 

About a quarter of a mile or more north of Jacob's 
Well, right east of Ebal, is Joseph's tomb, whither 
the children of Israel brought his bones when they 
took possession of the land. They went again to view 
it in the memory of one of the noblest of God's pure 
noblemen, the fairest by far of Israel's sons. Later, 
as tradition has it, his remains were brought to 
Hebron and deposited in the cave of Machpelah, 
where slumber Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and 
Rebecca, Jacob and Leah. Surely he is worthy to 
slumber, and in the day of the Son of Man to arise 
with them. 



Samaria. 



199 



Quitting a place they had found very disagreeable, 
despite its natural advantages, they crossed the brow 
of Mt. Ebal, and journeyed to ancient Samaria. 

Uncle Joseph remarked to Rollin: "Josephus says 
that it received its name of Sebastia from Herod, in 
honor of Augustus. The city has been sacked and 
plundered times without number. Upon its extreme 
summit Ahab had its famous ivory palace, and this 




MACHPELAH. 



acropolis constituted the capital of the ten tribes, until 
they were carried captive into Assyria. The modern 
remains, which are the finest in the Holy Land outside 
of Jerusalem, only date back nominally to the time of 
Herod, of course, but it is doubtless true that Herod 
employed much of the material of former ages in 
creating his splendid structures; in which event the 
debris represents a pre-Herodian antiquity. Against 



200 



The Pilgrims. 



the city for its idolatry, Micah and Hosea launched 
forth the invectives of prophecy : ' I will make Samaria 
as a heap of the held, and as plantings of a vineyard; 
and I will pour down the stones thereof into the val- 
ley, and I will discover the foundations thereof. 
Samaria shall become desolate, for she hath rebelled 
against her God; they shall fall by the sword, their 
infants shall be dashed to pieces.' There have been 
numerous literal fulfillments of these predictions." 
Looking down into the valleys as they rode around 
the hill, they frequently discovered broken columns 
and building rubbish. The party rode completely 
around the hill, a circuit of about two miles, tracing 
the remains of Herod's magnificent colonnade. 

There were evidently four rows of columns clear 
around the hill, supporting a porch above. The porch 
has vanished, but a great many of the massive col- 
umns are still standing. Other pillars are broken in 
pieces, lie prostrate, or are utilized in the construction 
of stone walls. Rollin counted nearly one hundred, 
and Uncle Joseph said that the great majority have 
either been destroyed by the natives or carted away 
to Europe to occupy niches in museums. The level 
place at the extreme top of the hill is adorned by six- 
teen very large columns. It was doubtless in the 
general inclosure that the great temple of Baal stood, 
which was utterly destroyed by Jehu, after he had 
received the heads of Ahab's seventy sons in baskets 
at the gate of Jezreel, and mercilessly slaughtered all 
the priests of Baal, as recorded in the tenth chapter 
of Second Kings. 

Rollin remarked: "Was it not very near Samaria 



Hebron. 



201 




202 



The Pilgrims. 



that Elisha dwelt when the horses and chariot of 
Naaman, the Damascene leper, halted before the door 
of his humble home?" 

"Yes," replied Uncle Joseph, "and here grasping, 
penurious Gehazi was made to inherit the leprosy 
of the Syrian captain, which 'should cleave unto his 
seed forever.' Perhaps some of the modern Nablous 
lepers are the inheritors of this fearful legacy of Gehazi. 
My impression is that it was very stupid of Naaman 
to put confidence in the word of a native like Gehazi.. 

"What terrible agony there must have been in 
Samaria during that memorable siege of Benhadad. 
After having traveled through the. Orient, it does not 
seem at all incredible to me that the people resorted 
to dove's dung for food until it actually became a 
costly luxury (2 Kings 6, 25). Not only did Elijah 
and Elisha work wonders in Samaria, but even the 
Apostles wrought miracles and preached there. The 
revival which was started by Philip, who far eclipsed 
the witcheries exercised by Simon the Sorcerer, 
induced the Apostles who had remained behind in 
Jerusalem to re-enforce him by sending Peter and 
John thither. Then was the Holy Ghost given, which 
Simon sought to buy with money." 

Rollin replied: "Dear Uncle, what was this Dove's 
dung spoken of ? " 

Uncle Joseph replied: "It Is generally agreed that 
it was the bulbous root of a small plant growing in 
this country. It is. also called 1 Star of Bethlehem," 
and is known in botany as OnitJwgahim Umbellatum* 
The bulb may be eaten raw, or dried, pulverized and 
mixed with flour and baked." 



The Pilgrims. 



From Samaria our Pilgrims continued on to Jenin, 
which is about half way from Shechem to Nazareth. 
It is spoken of in the Bible as En-Gannim, and was 
one of the cities which was given by Joshua to the 
tribe of Issachar. Joshua 19, 21. En-Gannim, or 
* Ain-Gannim means "the fountain of Gardens." This 
name has been changed to Jenin, which is the name 
now always applied to it. The situation is very pleas- 
ant. The fountain from which the place first took its 
name remains as it was in the days when the Israelites 
first came to live here. It bursts out in the midst of 
the valley in which the towa is situated, and sends 
forth a plentiful supply of excellent water. Gardens 
and orchards abound in this valley, and are kept fresh 
and flourishing by the water from this fountain. 

Jenin is a town of about two thousand inhabitants, 
who are nearly all Mohammedans. They are a very 
quarrelsome set of people, and are nearly always 
fighting, either among themselves or with their neigh- 
bors. 

No event of any particular importance is mentioned 
in the Bible as having taken place here. The point 
of greatest interest about Jenin, is that the fountain 
which rises here is one of the chief sources from which 
"That ancient river, the river Kishon" receives its 
supply of water. This river runs across the Plain of 
Esdraelon; along by the foot of Mt. Carmel; and 
then empties into the Mediterranean Sea. 

From Jenin the travelers descended to the Plain of 
Esdraelon, the battlefield of Palestine; sometimes it 
is called the "Plain of Tabor," and the "Galilean 
Plain." Gazing around in ecstasy, Rollin exclaimed: 



2o6 



The Pilgrims. 



<l What a magnificent area does this offer for contend- 
ing armies, and how often have they availed them- 
selves of it! Here Barak discomfited Sisera, who 
brought into the field nine hundred chariots of iron 
(Judges 4, 3). Here, also, Josiah, King of Judah, 
fought against Necho, King of Egypt, and the 
slaughter was so great as to cause universal mourning 
through the land. Crusaders, Mamelukes, Arabs, 
people of all nations have fought on this memorable 
spot." 

Uncle Joseph replied: "True, Rollin, and even in 
this century a remarkable battle was witnessed on 
this plain, for Napoleon Bonaparte here fought with 
and conquered a considerable Turkish force, after 
which he proceeded to Nazareth. I have surveyed 
the grounds of Waterloo, Leipsic, Vittoria, and many 
other plains where terrible battles have taken place, 
but they were certainly all far inferior in extent and 
convenience as fields of battle to this." 

Resuming their journey, our Pilgrims soon found 
themselves in the town of Nazareth, where our Sav- 
iour lived and toiled. Here they found the same 
superstitious notions that they had seen all through 
their travels in the Holy Land. Here was a large 
convent, having in its size and strength rather the 
appearance of a fortress than a religious house; its 
granaries were well supplied with corn; pigs and 
poultry were abundant within its walls, and the gar- 
dens were stocked with choice fruit trees. There 
were twelve monks, among whom the Spanish and 
Italian languages were spoken. The church of the 
convent was erected over the grotto where the mother 



Nazareth. 



208 



The Pilgrims. 



of Jesus lived, and received the assurance that she 
would become the mother of the Messiah. In the 
church there is a large picture of Jesus. Uncle 
Joseph told Rollin that it was believed, by these peo- 
ple, that it was an actual likeness of Jesus. This 
information interested Rollin very much, so that he 
was very particular to note the picture; it represented 
Jesus as tall and comely, with curling hair, a thick 
beard of a filbert color, of a mild, dignified counte- 
nance, and beautiful features. 

The second object pointed out to them was the 
workshop in which it is believed that Jesus w T orked. 
And next a laree stone was shown, where it is said 
Jesus sat and ate with a chosen few. They were now 
taken to an old synagogue, where they were told that 
Christ read to the Jews on the Sabbath day. And 
then a hill near the town was pointed out as the place 
where the rabble threatened to destroy our Lord by 
throwing- him down from it. 

Although Nazareth is a poor place, yet in the envi- 
rons the land was well cultivated, and the town itself 
displayed more industry, and more decent looking 
people, than they had yet witnessed, owing, probably, 
to the better understanding between the natives. 

The Pilgrims now visited the " Virgin's Well," at 
the foot of a hill outside of Nazareth. The well is 
so called because it is the only well about Nazareth, 
and of course Mary, the mother of Jesus, no doubt 
often went thither to draw water. 

Sitting on the rocks near the well, Rollin said: 
" Uncle Joseph, I am much interested in the history 
of this country and the people; the kings of Israel 



Wicked Men of Israel, 



209 



were wicked men. Jeroboam was unwilling to have 
the people go up to the temple at Jerusalem. He 
feared they would become interested in the service 
of the temple, and in the king, and priests, and peo- 
ple of Judah: and thus choose again to unite them- 
selves to that kingdom, and be governed by the 
descendants of David. He set up two golden calves, 
one at Bethel, in the southern part of his kingdom, 




virgin's well. 



and another at Dan, in the northern part. He com- 
manded that the three yearly festivals should be cele- 
brated before these idols. This he did in imitation 
of the idolatry of the Egyptians, who worshipped 
animals. Jeroboam lived at Shechem, which was, at 
that time, the capital city of the kingdom of Israel. 
14 



2 IO 



The Pilgrims, 



"The kings who reigned after Jeroboam introduced 
other idols, and the people forgot the law of Jehovah, 
and worshipped gods of wood and stone. During 
this period many prophets lived both in Judah and 
Israel, who were directed by God to inform the peo- 
ple of his displeasure against their idolatry, and to 
predict heavy national judgments if they did not re- 
pent. God showed his anger against the people of 
Israel for their sins, sometimes by sending famines 
and wars, and sometimes by causing political disturb- 
ances to prevail. Several of their kings were mur- 
dered by ambitious men, who wished to occupy their 
places, and in this way the succession was often 
changed. The crown remained in Jeroboam's family 
but a short time. Nadab, his son, was killed in the 
second year of his reign by Baasha, who instantly 
seized upon the government. 

" Forty-six years after the separation of the two 
kingdoms, Omri, king of Israel, built the city of 
Samaria, and made it the capital of his dominions. 

"Nearly six hundred miles east, and north-east of 
this country, were two powerful kingdoms. The 
most northerly kingdom was called Assyria, and was 
governed at that time by Tiglath Pileser, or, as he is 
called in some histories, Arbaces. The southern king- 
dom was named Babylonia, and was then governed by 
Belesis, called by some writers Baladin, and by others 
Nabonassar. 

"At length the people of Israel and Judah had be- 
come so idolatrous and sinful, that God determined to 
punish them, but especially the Israelites, who had 
most deserved it. And this was the way it was done. 



The King of Assyria. 21 1 

Pekah, king of Israel, united himself to Rezin, king 
of Syria, and made war against Ahaz, king of Judah. 
They came with a great army to take Jerusalem, in- 
tending to kill Ahaz, and make another person king. 
Ahaz was a bad man, but for the sake of his ancestor 
David, God determined that he should continue to 
reign over Judah. The two kings failed in their 
attack upon Jerusalem, and were obliged to return 
home. But Ahaz became more and more idolatrous, 
and even sacrificed his own children to Moloch. The 
anger of God was kindled against him, and he again 
permitted the king of Israel and the king of Syria to 
come with a great army and attack Judah. Ahaz was 
defeated, and his army destroyed, one hundred and 
twenty thousand of his subjects being left dead upon 
the field of battle. Instead of humbline himself before 
God, and asking him for aid, Ahaz determined to seek 
help from the king of Assyria. He wickedly robbed 
the temple of the silver and gold that were in it, and 
sent it to Tiglath Pileser, requesting him to come to 
his assistance. The king of Assyria immediately 
collected a large army, and marched westward; not 
for the sake of helping Ahaz, but that he might add 
the kingdoms of Israel and Syria to his own dominions. 
He first conquered the Syrians, and took Damascus, 
their principal city. Then he marched against Israel, 
and subdued all that part of the kingdom which lay 
east of the Jordan, and all the northern part of this 
country which was afterwards called Galilee. He 
then went to Jerusalem and obtained more money 
from Ahaz, but gave him no help. He seized upon 
Elath and Ezion-geber, where the kings of Judah had 



212 



The Pilgrims. 



carried on their trade to India, and thus excluded 
them forever from the ports on the Red Sea." 

44 Well indeed, Rollin," replied Uncle Joseph, "I 
see you are well posted concerning- the history of this 
ancient people; I would further add that when Tiglath 
Pileser returned to Assyria, he carried with him a 
multitude of captives, both from Syria and the land 
of Israel. He placed them in different parts of Media, 
which was then under the Assyrian government. 
After this, the kings of Israel governed but a small 
territory, and paid tribute to the kings of Assyria. 
But at last one of them refusing to pay the tribute, 
Salmaneser, the son and successor of Tiglath Pileser,, 
came and conquered the remainder of the country, 
and besieged Samaria, the capital. He took the city, 
and carried the people away to Halah, to the river 
Habor, or Chaboras, or Chebar, and to Gozan, on the 
east side of the Tigris, and to the cities of the Medes. 
This was two hundred and fifty-three years after the 
separation of the two kingdoms of Israel and Judah.. 
The kingdom of Israel was then entirely destroyed,, 
and the king of Assyria sent people from Babylon to- 
inhabit Samaria and the surrounding country. 

"The kingdom of Judah was now a small territory 
lying between the dominions of the king of Egypt 
and the king of Assyria. These two rival kings were 
both anxious to seize upon it, as it would have given 
either of them a great advantage against his neighbor. 
But so long as the people retained the temple wor- 
ship, and avoided the idolatry of the surrounding 
nations, God preserved them from their enemies. 
Hezekiah, the first king of Judah after the destruction 



Babylon. 



213 



214 



The Pilgrims 



of Israel, was a good man, who encouraged the people 
in obeying and serving the true God. When Sen- 
nacherib, king of Assyria, came against Jerusalem 
with a great army, Hezekiah sought no alliance with 
foreign powers, but went into the temple and called 
upon God for deliverance. God heard his prayers, 
and sent an angel, who destroyed, in one night, one 
hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian, 
camp. 

"But Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah. did not tread 
in his father's steps. He worshipped idols., and 
tempted the people to sin against God. During his 
reign, the jews became so forgetful of their duty, that 
the copy of the law of God. which had been kept in 
the temple to be read to the people on solemn feast, 
days., was lost, or perhaps hidden by some one. to 
prevent it from being destroyed. It was found in the 
reign of king Josiah. when he was repairing the tem- 
ple in order to reform the worship. 

"In the twenty-ninth year of the reiom of kino- 
Josiah. Xabopolassar. king of Babylon, married his 
son Nebuchadnezzar to the grand-daughter of Cyax- 
ares. king of the Medes. The kings of Babylon and 
Media then joined their armies, and attacked and. 
destroyed Nineveh. Afterwards the country of 
Assyria was governed bv the kin^s of Babylon. 

"At the close- of king Josiah s reign, his army was 
subdued by Pharaoh Xecho. king of Egypt, and the 
country of Judah became a province of Egypt. Dur- 
ing the reign of Jehoiakim in Judah. the Egyptian 
king; went to hVht against the kino- of Babylon. As 

O <-> O O J 

Xabopolassar was old and infirm, he gave the com- 



The Pilgrims. 



mand of his armies to Nebuchadnezzar, his son, who 
marched against the Egyptian army and defeated 
them. Then he went to Jerusalem and besieged it, 
and conquered the whole country of Judea. He, how- 
ever, allowed Jehoiakim to remain king, under the 
control of the kino- G f Babylon. He robbed the tern- 
pie of part of its furniture, and carried back with him 
several young men who were descended from the 
royal family of Judah, to be employed in the court of 
Babylon. Among these young men, were Daniel and 
his three friends. This was three hundred and sixty- 
nine years after the separation of the two kingdoms 
of Israel and Judah. Eighteen years after this, Neb- 
uchadnezzar again besieged Jerusalem, and utterly 
destroyed it. The people were carried away captive 
to Babylonia." 



71 ' 



Off for Tiberias. 



217 



CHAPTER XII. 

Off for Tiberias — Down to Capernaum — Valley of Pigeons — Cana — 
Goats — Milking — History of Tiberias — Declining Sun — Hot 
Springs — Sea of Galilee — A ride on the Sea — Capernaum. 



Early the following" morning- our Pilgrims started 

000 

for Tiberias and Capernaum, on the Sea of Galilee. 

As they were leaving; Nazareth, Rollin remarked 
that it was said of the Lord when he left Nazareth, 
that he "came down to Capernaum;" and he expressed 
a desire to know whether Nazareth was higher above 
the sea level, or why this remark in Luke. " Yes," 
said Uncle Joseph, "our way will be downward nearly 
twenty-three hundred feet. For Neby Sa'in, this hill- 
top by Nazareth, is sixteen hundred and two feet 
above the sea level, while the water's edge at Caper- 
naum is six hundred and eighty-two feet below. The 
road from Jerusalem down to the sea-coast at Jaffa 
descends twenty-five hundred and ninety-three feet; 
this which we are to take makes nearly as great a 
descent within about half the distance. It is by two 
great steps: first, from the Nazareth hill-tops, past 
Kefr Kenna, down to the plateau of Hattin; then a 
thousand feet down a wild gorge to the plain of Gen- 
nesaret. An easy day's journey, only eighteen miles 
in a straight line, made much longer, however, by the 
rugged, winding path down the Valley of Pigeons." 

After a journey of about a mile, the travelers came 
near the top of another, but lower ridge. Beside 
their path, to the left, was Er Reineh, a well-built vil- 



218 The Pilgrims. 

lage with a population of about five hundred, half of 
them Moslems, the rest Greek Christians. Its water 
supply is from three springs, one, which is passed 
before reaching the village, bearing the name Aim 
Kana. This led Captain Conder to suggest Er Reineh 
as the probable site of Cana of Galilee. In order to 
reach Cana, however, they had still another line of 
hills to cross, with a trend from northwest to southeast.. 
On one of these hills, a ^^ zzZUl^^ _ 

naif-mile to the left of :3jil 
this road, was a village, . . 

- - 

domes of a Moslem we- SSI? 
ly or shrine gleaming ^ t /■ 
out from among- the I 

trees. The village was - * j ^B^ ^^^^^^^^feS 
El Meshed; the wely 
Neby Yunas, the tomb 
according to an early 
tradition of the prophet Jonah 

Uncle Joseph said: "Most Biblical geographers 
consider it to be the site of Gath-Hepher, mentioned 
in 2 Kings 14: 25, as the prophet's birthplace. In 
that mountain village, within three miles of Nazareth, 
a prophet once arose out of Galilee. Eight centuries 
before Christ one of the earliest beacons of prophecy 
flamed out on that hill-top. This was the signal to 
which our Lord with warning finger pointed his Gali- 
lean hearers on two different occasions, as we read in 
Matt. 12: 39; 16: 4. A Galilean to Galileans, what 
warning could have been more impressive than 'the 
sign of Jonah the Prophet!' " 




Can a of Galilee. 



From the broad riclge they began to descend into a 
beautiful valley, with orchards and planted grain; 
beyond, at the foot of the slope, lay a small village — 
Uncle Joseph told Rollin that this was the Cana of 
Galilee where Jesus performed his first miracle, that 
of turning water into wine, at the marriage feast. 

At the outskirts of this village, the travelers halted 
and dismounted from their horses, near the house 
which is said to mark the spot where this marriage 
took place, and this miracle of Jesus was performed. 

Close by it is a well which 
yields an abundant sup- 
ply of clear, sweet water; 
no doubt it was from this 
very well that the serv- 
ants drew the water which 
Jesus turned into wine. 

They went into the 
house where that wed- 
ding is said to have taken 
place. The room in which the miracle is supposed to 
have been performed, is fitted up as a chapel, and two 
huge stone vessels, like great boilers, are shown, as 
specimens of the "six water-pots of stone, containing 
two or three firkins apiece," or about six or seven 
gallons. And when Rollin thought that this was prob- 
ably the place where Jesus had once stood, and where 
he commenced to work his wonderful miracles, it made 
that spot seem very interesting to him. 

About sunset, a large flock of goats gathered below 
their tents for the evening milking. A half-dozen 
women came out of the village, and planted them- 




TKR POTS. 



220 



The Pilgrims, 



selves and their pans here and there among the flock. 
The milkers having thus taken their positions, the 
milkees are seized and tugged to their respective pans 
by the little urchins, who had this for their business 
and fun; little girls mostly, who seemed to know each 
individual goat and kid, and to be on the best of terms 
with them notwithstanding the mauling of hides and 
tugging of pendent black ears, requisite to bring some 
of the animals to the required spot and posture. The 
milking was done from behind, and to Rollin this was 
quite amusing, being more familiar with the process as 
performed upon a Jersey cow. 

At five o'clock in the morning the Pilgrims began 
again the journey toward the Sea of Galilee. The 
villagers were already setting out to the field labor 
of the day, some of them to fields four, five, or six- 
miles off. The moraine milkine was over, and bovs 
were driving the flocks out to the hills. The travelers 
filed along a narrow path between barley-fields, aim- 
ing first across the plain of Toran. This "plain" is a 
broad valley stretching eastward as far as the hill of 

J o 

Hattin, which was the next objective point. Leaving 
on their left the grove — embowered village of Toran, 
the path turned north of east. There was not much 
of note to occupy their attention through the day, 
and in the early evening Tiberias was seen in the 
distance. Uncle Joseph remarked: "Yonder, City of 
Tiberias, was quite a new city in our Saviour's time. 
Herod was the founder of it, not long before the time 
of Christ, and he named it Tiberias, in honor of the 
Roman Emerpor. Jesus was often near this city, but 
we are not sure that he ever entered it. It was built 



City of Tiberias. 



22 1 



on a spot that had formerly been occupied as a ceme- 
tary. For this reason the Jews were not willing to go 
into it, because when they touched a dead body, or the 
place where such a body was laid, they were taught 
by their religion to consider themselves as unclean.. 

"The City of Tiberias has been standing ever since 
our Saviour's time. And though it is not much men- 
tioned in the history of Christ, yet many important 
events have taken place here since then. The city is 
enclosed by stone walls. In the year 1837 there was 
a great earthquake here, which shattered these walls,, 
and made great breaches in them. The Turks, who 
govern the city, have never attempted to mend those 
broken walls, but let them remain just as the earth- 
quake left them." 

As they neared the city, the face of nature was. 
beautifully illumined by the declining sun; the wide- 
spread lake, called "the sea of Galilee," was smooth 
as a mirror, and, surrounded by mountains, lay like 
a jewel in a casket, reflecting the last rays of the sun. 

The only place where .they could secure lodgings 
for the night, was in a wretched hovel. The natives 
here have a saying: "that the king of the fleas has 
his court in Tabaria;" and Rollin observed, "that his 
drawing-room must be in that place," for it literally 
swarmed with them; and such were his sufferings 
from this cause, that he took his mat into the outer 
court, and sought for repose under the canopy of 
heaven. Fleas, lice, and bugs are not only abundant 
throughout the whole land, but very few situations 
can be found where they do not swarm, to the con- 
stant annoyance of travelers. 



222 



The Pilgrims. 




Tiberias. 223 

The following morning Uncle Joseph and Rollin 
walked all over the town, which is small, and walled 
all around, with towers at equal distances. At the 
northern extremity are the remains of the ancient 
town, discernible by means of parts of the wall, and 
many beautiful fragments of columns of red granite. 
South of the town they found the famous hot baths, 
which consist of three springs of mineral water, so 
hot that Rollin could not bear his hand in them for 
more than fifty seconds; yet it would not boil an egg, 
even when out of the shell. 

Over these springs is a Turkish bath, much resorted 
to by the Jews, who also repair frequently to an ex- 
cavation in the cliff near this spot, for which they have 
a great veneration, believing it to be the tomb of the 
patriarch Jacob. Having seen these sights, they 
directed their attention to the lake, sorry to find that 
there was no boat or vessel of any kind, by which 
they could sail upon its bosom, as our Lord so fre- 
quently did, when he instructed the people from the 
ship, and when he gave the miraculous draught of 
fishes. 

"Yes, it was here, dear Uncle," said Rollin, "that 
our Lord walked upon the waters — from these shores 
he called on the humblest individuals to leave their 
occupations and become his disciples, thus ennobling 
therm to all eternity. All around to me seems full of 
Him, Surely this is the finest lake in the world! 
What a pity that we cannot sail upon it, and explore 
its shores." 

Uncle Joseph replied: "How much more pleasant 
it is to ramble along the shores of this beautiful lake, 



224 



The Pilgrims, 



than to walk through the narrow, dirty streets of the 
disagreeable city. This lake received the name of 
'Sea of Galilee,' because it lies in a part of the 
country to which this name is given. It is sometimes 
called the Lake or Sea of Gennesaret, because there 




SEA OF TIBERIAS. 



is a beautiful plain of the name on the northern shore 
of. the lake. And once or twice it is called the Sea 
of Tiberias, from this city. This lake or sea is only 
about thirteen miles in length, and six in breadth. In 
comparison with some of our great lakes it is very 
small. The river Jordan flows into it on the north 
end, and passes out from the south. From the gorges 



Tiberias. 



225 



in these mountains you see the winds often rise very 
suddenly, and blow with great violence. These toss 
the waters of the lake about, and make it very dan- 
gerous for such little boats as sail in it now, as well 
as in our Saviour's days." 

In their rambles along the lake they soon found a 
fisherman with a boat, like those that were used by 
Andrew and Peter, and James and John, when fish- 
ing was their business, before Jesus called them to 
become " fishers of men." For a small sum of money 
he now agreed to take them out on the lake. The 
ride was much enjoyed by our travelers, who could 
not but think of the time when Jesus was overtaken 
by a storm, as he lay asleep in the hinder part of the 
ship, or boat, and of the distress of the disciples when 
they were afraid of sinking in the stormy sea, and 
how they cried to their divine Master, saying: "Carest 
thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked 
the wind, and said unto the sea: Peace, be still. And 
there was a great calm." No wonder that the disci- 
ples marveled and said: "What manner of man is 
this, that even the wind and the sea obey him." 

They thought, too, of that stormy night, when the 
disciples were "toiling in rowing, for the wind was 
contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night," or 
just before morning, "Jesus went unto them, walking 
on the water." They thought of the terror of the 
disciples, when they cried out with fear, supposing it 
was a spirit; and of the cheering voice of Jesus, when 
He said: "It is I; be not afraid!' They thought of 
impulsive Peter, asking permission to go to his Mas- 
ter walking on the water. He walked a few steps, 
15 



226 



The Pilgrims. 



then frightened by the storm-waves, was beginning 
to sink, when Jesus caught him by the hand, and said: 
" Oh, thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? " 

Returning from their boat-ride, our Pilgrims took 
lodging for another night, but this was enough experi- 
ence for them. On the morrow they started for the 
supposed site of Capernaum, which was but a few 
miles distant. On their way thither Uncle Joseph 
and Rollin were busily engaged in conversation about 
Capernaum, the Home of Jesus. This place Jesus 
made his home during his entire ministry, it may be 
that his mother had a house of her own here, and 
that Jesus stayed with her when he came to Caper- 
naum. 

Uncle Joseph remarked: "There is no other place 
where so many of his mighty works were performed; 
.and none in which he preached so many sermons, 
spoke so many parables, and offered so many prayers, 
as in Capernaum. It was here that Jesus healed the 
demoniac in the synagogue, as we read in Mark i : 
21-28. It was here he cured Peter's wife's mother, 
Luke 4: 38-44; and restored the man, sick with the 
palsy, Matt. 9: 2-8. Here He called Matthew to be 
an apostle; cured the centurion's servant, Luke 7: 
1— 10; and raised the daughter of Jairus from the 
dead, Mark 5: 32-43. And it was here, too, that He 
sent Peter fishing, in order to get the 'tribute money' 
for himself and his Master, Matt. 17: 24-27. 

"It was near Capernaum that He chose His twelve 
apostles, as we read in Mark 3: 13-19. It was not 
far from here that he preached the ' Sermon on the 
Mount,' and spoke the parables of the 'sower', the 



228 



The Pilgrims. 



'tares,' the treasure hid in the field/ 'the merchant 
seeking goodly pearls,' and the 'net cast into the sea/ 
All these are spoken about in the 13th chapter of 
Matthew. These and various other things that Jesus 
did, all show us how great our interest in the place 
should be. 

" And then there is another thing that helps to 
make the thought of this place interesting to us, and 
this is what Jesus said about Capernaum. 

" He found that the people in this city and the 
towns near it, would not heed either the words that 
He spoke, or the miracles that He performed, and so- 
we read, 'Then began He to upbraid the cities 
wherein most of His mighty works were done, because 
they repented not. Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe 
unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works which 
were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon,. 
they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and 
ashes. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto 
heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell!' These are 
fearful words. But fearful as they are, they have all 
come to pass. It is not known exactly just where 
Chorazin and Bethsaida stood. But it was somewhere 
near Capernaum. They were all guilty of the same 
sin, and they were all to share in the same punish- 
ment. Jesus said Capernaum was 'exalted to heaven/ 
It was the same with the other cities. The meaning 
of this is, that they were unusually favored with bless- 
ings and privileges. This refers particularly to the 
fact that Jesus spent so much of His time there. It 
was a great privilege to be permitted to hear Him 
preach, and to see the miracles that He performed. 



Capernaum. 



229 



This seemed to bring heaven very near them. It 
raised them, as it were, to its very gate. It would 
have been very easy for them to step in. And this is 
the way in which the people of Capernaum were 
''exalted to heaven! 

" But Jesus declared that a great change was to 
come over that city. He said it should ' be brought 
dozen to hell ! ' This does not mean that all the inhabi- 
tants of that city should lose their souls, and perish 
forever. It only means that the city which had been 
:so very much prospered should lose its prosperity, and 
be brought to the lowest place among cities. The 
word hell is used here not to denote the place of pun- 
ishment in the other world, but a state of desolation 
and destruction, to which that city should be brought 
in this world. Being 'exalted to heaven,' only meant 
the privileges and prosperity which the peoole of this 
city enjoyed, and so being 'brought down to hell,' 
only denoted the loss of their prosperity and bless- 
ings. Their privileges, wealth, and other blessings, 
were to be taken from them, and they were to sink 
.as low among cities as they had formerly been ex- 
alted. 

"And these words of our Saviour's were wonder- 
fully fulfilled. In the wars between the Jews and the 
Romans, these cities were utterly destroyed. And so 
they have remained ever since. And now it is im- 
possible to tell where Capernaum was, or either of the 
other cities that stood near it. Nothing but these 
broken columns, and other ruins scattered about these 
shores of the lake, leave us to suppose that these 
•cities once stood here." 



23° 



The Pilgrims. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

Start down the Jordan— Uncle Joseph's Description— The Bridges — 
Bethsheen — Histon- — The Sheepfold — Hand-mills— Churning — 
The Journe}- Resumed— The Fords — The Bathing of the Pil- 
grims — The Return. 

Preparations were now made for a trip down the 
Jordan Valley. Rollin looked forward to this trip 
with great delight, expecting it to be one of the most 
enjoyable and profitable excursions of their journey 
in the Holy Land. 

Before starting on the journey Uncle Joseph said, 
in reply to questions of Rollin: "The Jordan is some- 
times simply called 'The Rivers' (Gen. 31: 21), it 
was the eastern boundary of Judea. The name is a 
compound of Jor and Dan, meaning the 'River of 
Dan.' It is formed by three small brooks which run 
alone the base of Mount Hermon. The northern- 
most, which is the largest of the three, rises near Has- 
beiya; it is not mentioned in the Bible. The source 
of the second is a short distance south-west of that 
of the first, and it runs through a beautiful broad val- 
ley, called by the Arabs the Merj Ayun, or ' Meadow 
of the fountains,' and in the Bible, Ijon, or 'fountains.' 
The second is the beautiful brook of Paneas, whick 
commences at the foot of the southern declivity of 
Hermon. These three streams unite in the sea of 
Merom, i. e. 'the upper sea,' which lies in a deep basin, 
and is surrounded by high, steep mountains. There- 
is also a fourth brook, which unites with the Paneas 



Down the Jordan. 



231 



or Banias, which the inhabitants of this region regard 
as the main source of the Jordan. It rises near the 
site of the ancient Dan or Laish. Some travelers 
have supposed the true source of the river to be the 
Phiala lake, which lies at the foot of the western 
declivity of Jebel Heish (a range of hills running south 
from Hermon), and as there is no visible outlet to this 
lake, they imagine that a subterranean connection 
exists between it and the fountain of Banias. The 
whole course of the river is computed at two hundred 
miles, but in a direct line does not exceed ninety-two 
miles. 

"The ordinary breadth of the Jordan, opposite 
Jericho, and near where the Israelites are supposed to 
have crossed, is said by travelers to be sixty feet, 
about six or seven feet deep, and with a current so 
•strong as to be resisted with great difficulty. It has, 
however, two banks on each side. The first, or inner 
one, is that of the river in its natural state, and the 
second, or outer one, about the eighth of a mile dis- 
tant, is its bank when it overflows. This overflowing 
is occasioned by the melting of the snow on Lebanon 
and Hermon, in March and April, which was the time 
of the Jewish harvest (Josh. 3: 15; 1 Chron. 12: 15). 
It was at this season when the Jordan was at its 
height, that the passage of the Israelites took place; 
and hence the miracle, on that occasion, was the more 
stupendous. At the point of their passage, the Pil- 
grims now collect for the purpose of bathing. The 
annual procession for this purpose takes place soon 
after Easter. Multitudes of pilgrims, under the pro- 
tection of the governor of Jerusalem and his guards, 



232 



The Pilgrims. 



visit this spot, plunge into the stream, and, 
taking- a bottle of water with them, return 
to Jerusalem. For this privilege, each pil- 
grim pays a tax to the Turkish government. 
Until within a few years there were only 
two instances of Europeans having traversed 
the entire valley of the Jordan : namely, that 
of St. Wilibald, first bishop of Aichstadt, 
who went as a pilgrim in the seventh cen- 
tury; and that of Baldwin I., king of 
Jerusalem, who was accompanied in his 
journey by a small body of knights, during 
the period of the crusades. So late as 1806, 
the immediate neighborhood of the southern 
extremity of the Dead Sea remained utterly 
unknown. Burckhardt disclosed the dis- 
tricts of Edom and Sinai in 1812. Ulrich 
Jasper Seetzen, in 1806, discovered the true 
sources of the Jordan, the eastern districts 
of its valley, and the whole eastern coast- 
line of the Dead Sea, penetrating towards 
the southern end of that sea or lake into 
the salt vallev of Zoar, and reaching the 
boundary of the Brook of Willows, or 
Sared, which was once forded by Moses with the 
children of Israel, when proceeding from Mount 
Sinai, near the Red to the Dead Sea, where he first 
stood on Moabitish ground. Seetzen could only 
effect his purpose under the protection of several 
independent chieftains of the Bedouin robbers who 
had partaken of bread and salt with him in their 
tents, and were consequently bound to afford him de- 



JERICHO; 



1 

hi 

f4 



JORDAN VALLEY. 



Description. 



233 



fence. He was only able to gain his point by pro- 
ceeding on foot, in a tattered garment, with a beggar's 
staff in his hand, divesting himself of valuables of 
every kind, and carrying a skin of flour and water for 
his subsistence. He advanced upon his former steps 
in a second journey in 1807, and hesitated not to be 
alone for weeks in the most dreary wildernesses. 




SEE OF MEROfrJ. 



This adventurous traveler at length was sacrificed by 
some murderous and unknown hand while exploring 
Southern Arabia. 

"The British Board of Ordnance engaged Lieuten- 
ant Symonds, R. N., in 1 841, to undertake a triangu- 
lation and determining- of the levels of the lake of 
Tiberias, and the course of the Jordan down to the 



234 



The Pilgrims. 



Dead Sea, and to sound its depths. In 1847, the 
actual navigation of the river was undertaken by- 
Lieutenant Molyneux. At first his success was but 
partial. During eight days, and within the distance 
of about thirty leagues, he had to struggle against 
the rocks, shoals, and rapids, which were all but im- 
practicable, as well as the Bedouins haunting the 
banks. From these he escaped by night, and by a 
quick retreat to the oasis of Jericho. In a few days, 
however, he collected fresh forces, and in September- 
embarked once more, and entered the Dead Sea, on 
whose fearful waves he was tossed by a violent gale 
for two days; but reaching the northern shore, whence 
he had set out a short time before, he sunk under 
fatigue and exhaustion. One year afterwards the 
third expedition was undertaken, and conducted with 
admirable success, by the United States Government;, 
a vessel having been fitted out for the purpose, and 
placed under the command and scientific direction of 
Lieutenants Lynch and Dale, to whom we are in- 
debted for very valuable and complete information 
respecting the Jordan, the Dead Sea, and their re- 
spective vicinities." 

Rollin was now all the more anxious to commence 
the journey down the Jordan valley. Our travelers 
started out with boats through densest brushwood, 
where the stream flowed swiftly in a channel about 
one hundred feet broad, and four feet deep. The 
eastern bank was twenty feet in height, and quite 
precipitous, except at one point, where they found the 
remains of an ancient bridge. Rollin was much de- 
lighted to find behind Kerak the river bend west and 



The Bridges, 



235 



then east under lofty cliffs, and through a jungle of 
canes and reeds run merrily along-, until it entered 
the deep ravine, which the Arabs designate the Ghor, 
and finally commenced its tortuous course to the 
Dead Sea. 

Rollin had a desire to raste the water of the river, 
and reaching out over the side of the boat he filled a 
cup. The water was quite turbid, but, standing for a 




THE JORDAN. 



while, it became clear and bright, and pleasant to the 
taste. The water is remarkable for the length of time 
during which it will retain its freshness. 

Here now began the devious course of the river,/ 
and the next object of interest that they suddenly 
met were the remains of a second bridge, evidently of 
Roman construction. Dr. Wilson calls it El-Kanai- 
terah, and a little farther on was found a bridge of 



The Pilgrims. 



five arches thrown across its first eastern tributary, 
the Sheriat el-Mandhur, which flows past Urn Keis, 
or Gadara. Here they found several weirs in the 
river, which broke it up into numerous little channels. 

Passing the village of El-Abadiyeh, on the right 
bank — a large collection of huts, situated on a con- 
siderable eminence — they reach the ruins of El-Buk ah, 
which lie on either side of the river. Just above 
occurs a small waterful, where the Jordan foams over 
its rocky bed with surprising violence. Large herds 
of camels were seen in every direction, roaming over 
the barren hills in search of food. Below El-Buk'ah 
the vegetation was luxuriant, and the stream divided 
into two branches, enclosing an oval island of five to 
six miles in circuit. Beyond their point of confluence 
they come to the Jisr Mejamia, the "bridge of the 
place of meeting" — It had one large and three smaller 
Saracenic arches below, and six smaller ones above 
them; four on the east, and two on the west side. 
The river, deep, narrow, and impetuous, flowed through 
the larger arch, and immediately branched; the left 
arm, rushing down a nearly perpendicular fall of about 
eight feet, and scarce a boat's length ahead, encount- 
ered the bold rock of the eastern bank, which de- 
flected it sharply to the right. The other branch, 
winding by an island in the center, and spreading 
over a great space, was shallow, and eddied about 
a number of rocks. 

On the western bank the crest of the volcanic rock 
is crowned by a ruined khan, of a square form, with . 
high loopholed walls, and several well-built towers. 

The journey has now brought our Pilgrims to the 



History. 



237 



ford of Beisan, or Bethsheen, the ancient Scythopolis. 
This large Arab village is situated in a fertile and 
well-watered plain, which, in early Summer, waves 
greenly with Indian corn. Here was seen an abund- 
ant vegetation extending up the slopes of the eastern 
hills, which were clothed with trees even to the 
summit, and every plant growing in the wildest pro- 
fusion; while, on the western side, the higher hills 
broke down into steep sand-hills, or whitish perpen- 
dicular rocks, which were only here and there 
accessible. 

Rollin, who, by the way, was well versed in the 
Scriptures, remarked: "Here, at Beisan, Saul threw 
himself upon his sword, and perished, after his defeat 
upon Mount Gilboa; and his body was afterwards 
exposed outside the wall of this town. His sons fell 
on the same occasion, and their bodies met with a 
similar fate." 

"Yes," replied Uncle Joseph, "and here were born 
Basilides, a famous Gnostic philospher, who taught in 
Egypt during the early part of the second century. 
He held the dualist notion of two antagonistic princi- 
ples, Good and Evil; and the Christian father, Cyril. 
In the days of St. Jerome it was a place of some 
magnificence; afterwards it became the chief bishopric 
in Palestina Secunda, and possessed a celebrated 
convent. Terrible cruelties were inflicted on its 
Christian inhabitants in the reign of Julian the Apos- 
tate; and as, owing to its exposed situation, these 
were continued by successive barbarian invaders, the 
bishopric was removed by the Franks to Nazareth. 

" In Hebrew history the town was known as Beth- 



238 The Pilgrims. 

sheen, or Beth-shan, (' the house of peace'); of which 
Beisan is a corruption. Its ancient walls, theatre, 
citadel, and Roman bridge, are in some degree of 
preservation." 

Here our pilgrims concluded to stop for a day's 
rest. But Rollin could not remain inactive, he had 
one of the guides to go with him to point out objects 
of interest. The first of these was a sheepfold. This 
was an inclosure made of a substantial stone wall, 
surmounted by brambles. Into this the sheep were 

brought for safety during the 
niorht. The o-uide said that 

o o 

"sometimes a portion is pro- 
tected by a low roof, for shelter 
in wintry and stormy weather. 
The door is made of a few 
sticks laid across the entrance 
and is guarded by the 'porter' 
(gate or door-keeper). The 
stone wall is quite sufficient to protect the sheep 
against wolves, but may be scaled by thieves and 
robbers, and is also no sure protection against leop- 
ards or panthers. Several flocks of sheep are often 
sheltered in the same inclosure, the shepherds com- 
mitting their charges to the porter, or door- keeper, 
and receiving them again in the morning. It is his 
business to receive the several flocks from the shep- 
herds. The flocks remaining in his care for the night, 
the shepherd going to his lodgings. In the morning 
the shepherd on coming will find the door ready to 
open for him, the porter recognizing his right to 
•enter." 




The Sheepfold. 



239 



Rollin then took out his Bible and read from the 
10th chapter of John, from the first to the eighteenth 
verses. And as he read the guide was good enough 
to explain the parable. The guide now drew Rollin's 
attention to the fact that it was nearly time for the 
shepherds to start out with their flocks, and suggested 
that they halt at one of the largest sheepfolds, and 
await the event. "Now," said the guide, "read the 
third and fourth verses of that chapter." Rollin read: 
"To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his 
voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and 
leadeth them out. 

"And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth 
before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know 
his voice." 

"We will soon see a practical illustration of these 
words," said the guide. 

They had not long to wait, until shepherds began 
arriving and entering the fold, and as thev sat and 
looked, the silent hillsides were in a moment filled 
with life and sound. The shepherds led their flocks 
forth. They were in full view, and Rollin watched 
them, and listened to them with no little interest. 
Thousands of sheep and goats were there, grouped 
in dense, confused masses. The shepherds stood 
together until all came out. Then they separated, 
each shepherd taking a different path and uttering, as 
he advanced, a shrill, peculiar call. The sheep heard 
them. At first the masses swayed and moved, as if 
shaken by some internal convulsion ; then points struck 
out in the direction taken by the shepherds; these 
became longer and longer, until the confused masses 



240 



The Pilgrims. 



were resolved into long, living streams, flowing after 
their leaders. 

"Ah," said Rollin, "this puts me in mind of an illus- 
tration that I read of a traveler in Greece who found 
three shepherds with flocks of six or seven hundred 
each, all mingled together, but the sheep would 
answer to their names when called by their owner, 
but not if called by another. This traveler experi- 
mented with them. He called, and the sheep took 
no notice. The shepherd called, and they came. 
Then he said that the sheep knew the shepherd by 
his dress, and not by his voice. But when the shep- 
herd exchanged clothes with the traveler, the sheep 
would not obey the strange voice; but when in the 
traveler's dress the shepherd called, the sheep came 
at his bidding. So the Christian knows Christ's 
voice." 

"Such is really the case," replied the guide; "and 
every sheep among the thousands has its own name, 
by which it is known to the shepherd." 

From this scene Rollin and the guide went on a 
short journey from the village, and the first object of 
interest was the hum of a hand-mill. 

"From this on, southward through the land, there 
are no mills, and we shall not cease to hear the 
hum of the hand-mill," said the guide. Two women 
were sitting at the mill, both had hold of the han- 
dle by which the upper was turned round on the 
"nether" mill-stone. The one whose rigfht hand was 
disengaged threw in the grain as occasion required 
through the hole in the upper stone, which is called 
the rekkab (rider) in Arabic, as it was long ago in 



Hand-mills. 



241 



Hebrew. Rollin saw that it was not correct, as he had 
it explained to him, that one pushes it half way round, 
and then the other seizes the handle. This would be 




EASTERN MILL. 



slow work, and would give a spasmodic motion to the 
stone. Both retain their hold, and pull to, or push 
from, as men do with the whip or cross-cut saw, 
16 



242 



The Pilgrims. 



The guide said: "The proverb of our Saviour is 
true to life, for women only grind. I cannot recall an 
instance in which men were at the mill. It is tedious, 
fatiguing work, and slaves or lowest servants are set 
at it. From the king to the maid-servant behind the 
mill, therefore, embraced all, from the very highest to 
the very lowest inhabitants of Egypt. This grinding 
at the mill was often imposed upon captives taken in 
war. Thus Samson was abused by the Philistines, 
and, with Milton for his poet, bitterly laments his 
cruel lot: 

' To grind in brazen fetters under task, 
Eyeless, in Gaza, at the mill with slaves.' " 

Rollin inquired: "What is the foundation for the 
comparison, Hard as the nether mill-stone? Is the 
lower harder than the upper?" 

The guide replied: "Not always. They are often 
both of the same porous lava, brought from the 
Hauran; but I have seen the nether made of a com- 
pact sandstone, and quite thick, while the upper was 
of this lava, probably because from its lightness, it is 
the more easily driven round with the hand." 

Rollin observed a woman with a skin bag, fastened 
to a tent-pole, which she was shaking vigorously; his 
curiosity was excited at once, and he inquired of the 
guide an explanation. 

The guide cheerfully responded: "The Arabs and 
Syrians use a kind of boiled butter, called gee. The 
milk is put into a large copper pan, over a slow fire, 
and a little sour milk, or a portion of the dried en- 
trails of a lamb, is thrown into it. The milk then 
separates, and is put into a goat-skin bag, which is 



Churning. 



243 



tied to the tent-pole, as you see, and moved backwards 
and forwards for two hours. The buttery substance 
having coagulated, the water is pressed out, and the 
butter is put into another skin. After two days it is 
placed over the fire again, and allowed to boil for 




MAKING BUTTER. 



•sometime, during which it is carefully skimmed. Butter 
so prepared will keep in any hot climate. The milk 
of cows, goats, and sheep are used; and it is mostly 
used to impart softness and nutritious qualities to 
bruised wheat and rice." 

The two returned to the hotel, and the afternoon 



244 



The Pilgrims, 



and night were spent in rest. On the following 
morning the journey was resumed. 

The next point of interest was the Zor el-Busha, 
Along this part of the river's course the scenery was 
beautiful. 

For hours, in their swift descent, the boat floated 
down in silence, the silence of the wilderness. Here 
and there the eye was gladdened by spots of solemn 
beauty. With a music that seemed almost mystical 
sang the numerous birds; the willow branches lay 
extended on the stream like tresses; from out among 
them arose clambering weeds and creeping masses, 
with a multitude of little silvery flowers; the cliff- 
swallow swept over the falls, or at his own wild will 
darted through the arched vistas shadowed and shaped 
by the embowering foliage on the banks; while, above 
all, yet attuned to all, rose the music of the river, with 
a sound like that, of shalms and cymbals. 

Many islands, some fairy-like, and rich in a beauti- 
ful vegetation, others mere sand-bars and sedimentary 
deposits, intercepted the river's course, but were 
recognized as graceful features in what otherwise 
might be a somewhat monotonous scene. 

With a continuous succession of the most abrupt 
and rapid curves, the Jordan flows onward to the 
Dead Sea, ever descending- lower and lower beneath 
the level of the Mediterranean, the plain on either 
hand widening gradually as it advances. 

They passed the ford of Sett a; that of Damieh, 
where the river is crossed by the road from Nablus; 
and the mouth of the Jabbok, or Wady Zerka. 

" Here," said Uncle Joseph, "is where Jacob wrestled 



Convent of St. John. 



245 



with the angel, and prevailed. At this point he forded 
the river, after sending his messengers to Esau; he, 
his wives Rachel and Leah, the two maids, and his 
eleven children. 

"On the west bank of the Jordan, below this point, 
lie the ruins of a Convent of St. John, which was re- 
built by the Emperor Justinian, and in the fourteenth 
•century was still inhabited by Greek monks. Fabian 



id 




WATERED GARDENS. 



tells us that imposing ceremonies were formerly cele- 
brated there at the feast of Epiphany. In the belief 
that it was in this part of the river our Lord was 
baptized, the Patriarch of Jerusalem and the Abbot 
of Bethlehem were wont to go down with many 
monks and priests, and a deputation of the laity: 
chanting psalms and hymns, they moved onward to 
the Jordan; then the Abbot of St. John's entered the 
stream, and dipped the cross in the water; the sick 



246 



The Pilgrims. 



were baptized and healed; and many supposed mir- 
acles wrought for the edification of the faithful. 

"Early in the fifteenth century the convent was 
destroyed by the Arabs. Its ruins are now called 
El- Yehud, or the Jews' castle. 

"The Greek Bathing-place, now called Kl-Meshra, 
lies lower down. It is believed in the East to be the 
spot where the Israelites crossed the river with the 
Ark of the Covenant, and where John baptized our 
Lord, on the day that he was recognized by a voice 
from heaven as the ' Son of God.' 

"The Bathing of the Pilgrims is a scene that still 
takes place every year; a scene which could occur 
nowhere but in the East, and one that is markepl by 
the most picturesque details. 

"Just below the traditional Bathing-place occurs the 
ford Helu, better known as the Pilgrims' Ford; and 
about nine miles below this point, the river, whose 
course we have followed with so much interest, pours 
its waters into the basin of the Dead Sea. At its 
influx it measures about one hundred feet broad — 
flowing, generally, with a full, equable, and moderate 
current; but its breadth varies according to the 
season of the year.'" 

At the ford of Helu our travelers found the upper 
banks or terraces of the Jordan not more than five 
hundred feet apart; from their summit to the edge of 
the river was a descent of about fifty to sixty feet. 
The vegetation was much less abundant than higher 
up the stream, and diminished rapidly as they ap- 
proached the Dead Sea, until at length every trace 
disappeared except a few saline and alkaline plants. 



Bathing of the Pilgrims. 



248 



The Pilgrims. 



Our travellers returned to the Sea of Galilee, by 
much the same route as that which they had followed 
the Jordan, having spent nearly one month on the 
journey; many passages of Scripture were made 
plain to them, and, although the journey caused them 
much fatigue, yet they felt well repaid. 



Temple Ruins of Baalbeck. 249 



CHAPTER XIV. 

The start for Baalbeck — Arabs— Lebanon— Cedars of Lebanon — 
Baalbeck — Ruins — Valley of the Abana — ■ Enter Damascus — 
Mud hovels — The Bazaars — The age of D imascus — Silks — 
Arabian Nights — Head of John the Baptist — The soldiers. 



Leaving the Sea of Galilee, our Pilorims started 
northward toward Baalbeck and the ancient city of 
Damascus. They passed the night at lake Phiola, 




TEMPLE RUINS AT BAALBECK. 



and early in the morning of the next day resumed 
their journey. 

During the day's journey they passed many groups 
of Arabs, who were always troublesome and imper- 



The Pilgrims. 



tinent, but never proceeded to acts of open hostility.. 
Their dress was a small red cap, with a rag tied around 
so as to form a turban, drawers of linen, reaching to 
the lower part of the leg, with slippers, but no stock- 
ings. The women wore a head-dress in the form of a 
sugar-loaf, with a long white scarf thrown over it, so 
as to hide the face, which they carefully concealed if 
looked at, though they were not so particular in avoid- 
ing the eyes of Rollin as those of Uncle Joseph; and 
he thought their features frequently very fine. They 
reposed under a hovel, which was only a renewal of 
former inconveniences. 

Sleepless nights are favorable to expedition, and 
Rollin, excited by an object of so much attraction as 
the cedars of Lebanon, was soon ready, and prevailed 
on Uncle Joseph to depart. 

For some time the road was woody, and beautiful 
cascades poured down near them; vineyards and olive- 
trees grew all around, and before them the mountain 
rose stupendous in its majesty, and capped in dark 
clouds, which floated in various forms about the sides 
and summit. 

Lebanon is so called from the word Leban, white, 
there being always snow on the highest part during 
the whole year. The ascent was extremely fatiguing, 
and frequently obliged to be performed on foot, and, 
when they reached the part enveloped in snow, be- 
came extremely dangerous. The road from the village 
of Eden, which is beautifully situated in a valley near 
the foot of the mountain, is about five miles; but the 
famous cedars of Lebanon are not on the top of the 
mountain, nor necessarily viewed by those who ascend,. 



Lebanon. 



being situated on a small eminence in a valley, at the 
foot of the highest part. The land on the mountain's 
side has a sterile aspect, and the trees are remarkable 
for being all together in one clump, and from this spot 
the cedars are the only trees to be seen on Lebanon. 
There may be about fifty of them, but Rollin justly 
remarked: "their present appearance by no means 
corresponds with their ancient fame," for he could not 
find one of large dimensions or beauty; though in 
some cases four or five trunks seemed, by their injunc- 
tion, to make but one tree. Numerous names, some 
with a date of 1640, were .carved in the bark, which 
proves their antiquity, as they were undoubtedly large 
trees at that time. 

"These cedars are so perpetually referred to in the 
Old Testament, and every surrounding place of note 
has been so much indebted to them, that there can be 
no doubt that in former times their growth was very 
extensive, although we find, even then, that the neieh- 

o o 

borhood boasted some also; for Ezekiel says: 'All 
the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon.' 
In the Chronicles are the words, 'send me cedar trees 
and algum trees out of Lebanon;' and it is worthy 
of remark, that the walnut trees, the algum of the 
ancients, are even now in great perfection at Eden." 

On remarking this to Rollin, who was eazine to- 
wards that beautiful village, seen from the lofty emin- 
ence on which they stood, in all the beauty of its 
verdant grove, he said, "surely, dear Uncle, that must 
be the real Eden, the orarden of God, where man was 

o 

created ! " 

"From the description given in the 31st chapter of 



252 



The Pilgrims. 




CEDAR OF LEBANON. 



Lebanon. 



253 



Ezekiel, as calling it 'the garden of God,' one is led 
to think so; but yet it does not answer to the literal 
description, which speaks expressly of a river parted 
into four heads, which are certainly not found here. I 
am persuaded, therefore, that the appellation given to 
this spot by the Prophet was figurative, or in conse- 
quence of some tradition on the subject not borne out 
by the very exact definition given by Moses." 

They now ascended, with increased difficulty, the 
crest of the mountain, which was completely covered 
with snow, and so exceedingly cold, that vast as the 
prospect before them really was, they could not enjoy 
it, nor did they think its beauty equal to many other 
views which they had beheld. They therefore hastened 
their descent as fast as they were able to do it; but 
the steep and rugged sides, the deep cavities filled 
with snow which dazzled their eyes, rendered it a work 
of great difficulty; relieved, however, by the extent 
and interest of the objects which lay before them, and 
the consciousness of having achieved a work of diffi- 
culty and danger, which is always gratifying. 

At length they reached, at the southeast descent, a 
clear rivulet, and thankfully sat down to take the re- 
freshment they greatly needed, and happy would they 
have been if they could have indulged in the sleep 
which they wanted much; but, as they had bargained 
with their muleteer to proceed with them to the cele- 
brated ruins of Baalbeck, or the Kasmia, (the valley 
of which lay before them,) they were obliged to rouse 
themselves to further efforts. 

They had yet to pass many rugged hills, which 
were covered with shrubs, amongst which the myrtle, 



254 



The Pilgrims. 



the almond and pear-tree were frequently seen; but 
such was the fatigue they experienced, that they de- 
termined to stop at the first place where they should 
find a shelter, and when their guide found that by 
conducting them to a village he should secure a farther 
recompense, and perceived also the exhausted state 
of his cattle, he informed them that in this direction 
there were several villages where their wants could 




COLONADES AT BAALBKCK. 



be well supplied. This information he would have 
withheld, if he could have made any more money by 
so doing, for a principle of extortion may be said to 
run through the land, in all matters of bargain with 
strangers. 

At the village of Yead, within a short distance of 
the object of their wishes, they gladly took up their 
rest, and, despite of all inconveniences, obtained the 
comfort of refreshing sleep, from which they rose 
early to visit the ruins of Baalbeck. 



Baalbeck. 



2 55 



Much as tney had been led to expect, from the 
descriptions given by oriental tourists, respecting the 
celebrated ruins of Baalbeck, the reality went beyond 
their expectations. This city, once so splendidly 
adorned, some writers assert to have been founded 
by Solomon; others maintain that it Owes its exist- 
ence to the Emperor Adrian. Its beauty and magnifi- 
cence prove that whoever was the builder, he could 
command not only the resources of wealth and power, 
but the treasures of genius, industry, and skill. At a 
first view, it gives the idea of a city which has re- 
cently suffered bombardment, and indeed it is known 
that the Turks have blown up some very fine parts of 
it, from the mere love of mischief, so common to 
ignorance and stupidity. 

"Look at this beautiful rotunda, Uncle Joseph," 
•cried Rollin; "it is of Corinthian architecture, has six 
marble columns, and is ornamented with the Roman 
eagles." 

But Uncle Joseph, beautiful as he thought it, was 
attracted forward by seeing a little further a most 
enormous pile of buildings, the use of which he could 
not conceive, and formed of stones, which they thought 
larger than those used in the construction of the pyra- 
mid. Beyond that they entered a noble arcade, which 
led them to the grand temple, the especial object of 
•curiosity to all travelers, as being probably the finest 
model of antiquity in existence. 

Uncle Joseph thought this edifice a good deal re- 
sembled that of St. Paul's church, in Convent-Garden. 
The columns which support it are fifty-four feet high, 
and six feet in diameter; on each side there are four- 



256 



The Pilgrims, 



teen pillars, and the building- is enriched with most 
exquisite sculpture, representing various scenes in the 
heathen mythology, though the temple itself has been 
supposed to be dedicated to the sun. 

The interior is divided into three aisles, like the 
English churches, and the altar at the upper end is 
ascended by steps, and everywhere ornamented by a 
profusion of sculptured flowers and birds, disposed 
with the purest taste, and executed by the most 
masterly hands. Coming from this assemblage of 
magnificent objects, they were exceedingly struck by 
the remnant of a colonnade, where six pillars of un- 
equalled beauty are still standing, and support a pro- 
digious architrave, elaborately ornamented; on ex- 
amination they found these had been part of tw T enty 
columns, which, on ecah side had once formed an 
avenue to this unequalled temple. Again they be- 
came aware that the blocks of stone used here were, 
in many places, larger than any in the pyramids; for 
on measuring three, they found that had they been 
placed end to end, they would have extended to one 
hundred and ninety feet; in fact, everything connected 
with this splendid place bespoke a greatness as well 
as beauty, both in conception and execution, beyond 
all parallel. 

From hence they went to the theatre, of which there 
is comparatively little left. Proceeding through a 
subterranean passage ornamented with busts, they 
entered a square, surrounded with buildings, which 
had the appearance of a magnificent palace, as on 
each side there was a double line of columns, on 
which galleries were supported, and at the bottom of 



Baalbcck. 



257 



the court was a grand portico of Corinthian columns, 
each of one solid piece of marble, and of the finest 
proportions. These galleries were found to be two 
hundred feet long, adorned with festoons of sculpture, 
and exhibiting, in the disposition of every part, at once 
the perfection of design, and of skill in execution. 

It is impossible to give any description by language, 
which can convey the beauty and majesty of these 
ruined structures; it is a task far better performed by 
the pencil than the pen, and, had time permitted, most 
happy would Rollin have been to have spent day after 
day in so delineating them, since it is certain they 
awakened in him such an admiration of architecture 
that he has ever since devoted himself to the study 
of it. 

There are still a few inhabitants scattered amidst 
these awful ruins, and about a century ago there were 
many thousands, but in the year 1759, great numbers 
perished from an earthquake. A fine stream of water 
runs through Baalbeck, and so charmed was Rollin 
with all he saw, that, not contented with his examina- 
tions, which lasted till the sun had set, he expressed 
an earnest desire to remain all .night there. But this 
Uncle Joseph would not permit; they therefore re- 
turned to their lodging at Yead, the kind Uncle prom- 
ising that, "if possible, before finally quitting the 
country, they would endeavor to visit the ruins of 
Palmyra, or Tadmor in the desert." 

Thankful for this prospect of renewing the delight 
he had experienced in this extraordinary, though not 
melancholy proof of human power and intellect, Rollin 
with pleasure set out for Damascus, a city he wished 
17 



258 



The Pilgrims. 



ardently to visit, and which, when seen afar from 
Mount Lebanon, seemed to merit its eastern eulo- 
gium, as the " garden of the world;" but which holds 
a still hiofher interest in the heart of a Christian, as 
the scene of St. Paul's miraculous conversion — that 
wonderful circumstance, which, considered as an iso- 
lated fact, has, perhaps, done more than any other to 
establish the truth of the apostolic mission, and spread 
our divine religion on earth. 

About noon on the second day, after traveling over 
a fatiguing and uninteresting road, they saw Damascus 




DAMASCUS. 



before them in all its beauty, lying in the midst of a 
vast plain, like a luxurious garden, from which mina- 
rets, domes, and towers arose, giving the impression 
that this was a "city of palaces," amongst which a 
river of pure water, the most precious of all the gifts 
of nature in a thirsty soil, was seen to flow. 

They were now in the valley of the Abana, with 
.its riches and beauty. A fruit tree loaded with fruits; 
purple plums on drooping boughs hung as thick as 



Damascus. 



259 



nature could grow them; bushes, loaded with white 
blossoms, lined the wayside to gladden the eyes of our 
Pilorims. Walnut trees were very plentiful but tall, 
needle-like poplars, weeping willows, maple, oaks, 
figs, and other kindred trees labored to create variety. 
The road into the city was longer than they had ex- 
pected, and on arriving at the gates a tax was de- 
manded, and the conduct of all the persons they met 
evinced a spirit unfavorable to travelers. 

The next day 
they set out, in the 
first place, to see 
the eastern gate, 
near which St. Paul 
was journeying to 
Damascus, full of 
wrath towards the 
followers of Christ, 
and armed with 
power against 
them, when, by di- 
vine mercy, he was 
checked in his ca- 
reer, converted to 
the true faith, and 
taught to suffer 
himself, for the 
cause in which he 
had been eaeer to make others suffer. 

They found Damascus to be built of mud hovels and 
plaster "palaces," unbroken save by a score of min- 
arets, the crescent-tipped dome of the great Mosque, 




STREET STRAIT. 



26o 



The Pilgrims. 



and the forbidding walls of the stone " castle" at the 
northwest corner of the city. Even the boasted 
Mosque, for a glimpse of which these modest Moslems 
ask #4.00, was not what they had expected it to be. 
The famed bazaars were interesting indeed — especially 
to Rollin, who had never seen anything of the kind in 
his native country. The bazaars are extensive and 
w r ell arranged, and the eminent skill of the Damas- 
cenes in making the blades of swords, still remains 
unrivalled. It is said that the water is of a quality 
peculiarly calculated for tempering steel. 

Knife handles are also ornamented beautifully with 
gilded flowers, and their ingenuity in inlaying metals 
is unequalled even in Europe. The manufacture of 
damask silk was invented here, of which our friends- 
purchased robes at reasonable price. 

The streets are roofed over in many places to ex- 
clude the searching rays of the sun, who is as relent- 
less, as he is inquisitive here in Summer. This has 
the effect of creating a dim light. In the gloomy 
cells on either side of the street squat the proprietors 
smoking their hubble-bubbles, or officiously waiting- 
on customers. Every department of manufacture is 
represented in the bazaars. There is the Mercer's 
Bazaar, the Tailor's Bazaar, the Tobacco Bazaar, the 
Spice Bazaar, the Shoe Bazaar, the Book Bazaar, the 
Clog Bazaar, and the Saddler's Bazaar. The Persian 
carpets, the Indian fabrics, and the specialties of this 
old city are most tempting to the eye. 

Rollin inquired: "When you have once seen the 
bazaars, what is there of Damascus left?" 

Uncle Joseph replied: " You find few sights belong- 



Damascus. 



261 



ing to the city distinctively, and they have been seen 
during our rambles among the bazaars. The places 
of Scriptural interest which are exhibited here are the 
rankest of inventions, changing every year with the 
caprice of dragomans, or at the exigencies of public 
interest — wTfh a single exception. That exception is 
the street called 1 Straight,' whither blind Paul repaired, 
according to the Lord's directions, to the house of 
Judas. 




PAUL'S ESCAPE. 



"The house of Judas, the house of Ananias, who 
restored Paul's sight, the house of leprous Naaman, the 
scene of Paul's conversion, south of the city, and the 
place where Paul was let down from the wall in a basket, 



262 



The Pilgrims. 



are among the impostures that are palmed off upon 
sightseers as attractions of Damascus. But there is no 
guess-work about the Street Straight. We will now ga 
to see that street." With very little effort they found 
''Straight Street," which is not actually straight, but it 
is nearly so, and there is a mile of it which is sufficiently 
remarkable. The western end is quite wide, clean and 
attractive. The eastern end is less level, by reason 
of rubbish, and is narrow and unclean besides. Since 
the completion of the French road from Beirout, car- 
riages have existed in Damascus, and even enter the 
walled city. 

Uncle Joseph further said in answer to Rollin's- 
questioning about the age of Damascus: "Damascus 
is believed to be the oldest place of known habita- 
tion on the face of the globe, certainly the oldest ex- 
isting and flourishing city. Josephus gravely avers 
that it was founded by Uz, the son of Aram, (or Syria^ 
as the name is rendered in our Bibles). It is astonish- 
ing to think that it was the grandson of old Noah, who 
originally colonized this oasis. If, as is popularly 
supposed, Mesopotamia was the cradle of the human 
race, it would be natural to expect that, after the dis- 
persion of Babel, there would be a western movement 
across the Syrian desert via Palmyra and Kuryetein, 
to the banks of the Abana. Even in the days of 
Abraham Damascus was famous, for we read that his. 
steward was ' Eliezer of Damascus,' and again, in 
chapter 14: 15, the city is mentioned to render definite 
the location of Hobah as, if everybody must know the 
whereabouts of Damascus. 

"Here lived Benhadad, the audacious king, and 



Damascus. 



263 



leprous Naaman, his captain. Naaman had already 
been converted from his antipathy for Elisha by means 
of his miraculous cleansing in the Jordan, whereby, in 
answer to Elisha's prayer, he had been healed of his 
leprosy. Then he had sent costly presents to Elisha, 
which the latter refused, but which Gehazi appropri- 
ated to his cost. Now we find Benhadad on a sick 
bed, and hearing that the same Elisha approaches 
the Syrian capital, he humbly sends one of his servants, 
Hazael, with presents to inquire, ' Shall I recover of 
this disease?'' No wonder the crafty king should 
humble himself before one that had cleansed a leper. 
Hazael had previously been anointed a king by Elijah 
(1 Kings 19: 11,) and was so transparently treacherous 
that Elisha read his wicked schemes in his face, and 
wept. Murderous Hazael returned to Damascus, 
falsely assured Benhadad of prolonged life, and then 
smothered or poisoned him with a saturated cloth. 
Hazael usurped the royal authority, and under the new 
dynasty, Damascus attained temporarily its highest 
prosperity. Then Tiglath-Pileser, king of Assyria, 
came to the assistance of Judah, took Syria, and slew 
its monarch. 

"Then were fulfilled the prophecies of Isaiah 17: 1-3^ 
and Amos 1 : 4-5. But it was impossible for the city 
to cease to flourish. Through all the eventful changes 
which history brought to pass, the Roman and Moslem 
conquest, and all the critical periods when conquest 
was imminent, this perennial city has continued to be 
a great commercial center. It now must have about 
two hundred thousand inhabitants, and it is the boast 
of these Mohammedans that never since Islam w r as first 



264 



The Pilgrims. 



seated here in A. D. 634, has the cross displaced the 
crescent. 

"The principal manufacturers of the modern city are 
silks, which are exported to Persia, Bagdad and Egypt. 
Coarse woolen cloth for the abbas, or cloaks of the 
Bedouins, and fellahm cotton cloths, gold and silver 
ornaments, arms, etc. The city is not only the whole 
mart of the whole Hauran, but does a thriving busi- 
ness with the Bedouins of the desert. Yesterday was 
Friday, the great market day. and as we saw the 
streets in front of the leading bazaars they were almost 
impassable. 

"The Arabian nights retain their hold upon the 
popular mind. One of the commonest sights here is 
a crowd of men lounging dreamily about on the mats 
in a cafe, while one of their number regales them with 
the exciting adventures of Alladin, or some other 
equally fortunate creation of the imagination." 

Rollin responded: "Dear Uncle, I am told that they 
have a casket up at the Great Mosque, or did have one, 
purporting to contain the head of John the Baptist. 
I would like to ascertain the truth of this. Twice have 
we stood at the tomb of that good man, once in Sa- 
maria, and once by the castle of Macherus, on the 
mountains beyond the Dead Sea. Of course there 
will be another at Rome. As I see the monks pray- 
ing before modern antiquities, and reverencing spur- 
ious holy places, I think it would be better if they 
supplicated for brains part of the time. 

"The only thing specially interesting about the 
mosques to my mind, is the fact that it probably marks 
the site of the temple where Naaman dumped his two 



Damascus. 



265 



mules, burden of earth, which he had brought from 
Palestine, and made that characteristically Oriental 
prayer: 'In this thing the Lord pardon Thy servant, 
that when my master goeth into the house of Rimmon 
to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I 
bow myself in the house of Rimmon; when I bow 
down myself in the house- of Rimmon; the Lord par- 
don Thy servant in this thing.' The convicted Moham- 
medan to-day is equally afraid to come out on the 
Lord's side boldly, well knowing the persecution and 
possible death which such a course implies." 

Damascus being the headquarters of the Turkish- 
Syrian army, there is more or less Ottoman pageantry 
everywhere. It is always of the cheapest and most 
tawdry kind. Filthy creatures in uniform, asleep on 
their muskets at the city gates and in front of the few 
Governmental buildings, while bands of alleged music- 
ians occasionally parade the streets. There is a hos- 
pital which may fairly be called decent. Of course the 
whole "army" here stationed is merely a society of 
vampires, paid practically nothing, and let loose to 
prey upon the natives. The Syrians naturally hate 
their rulers, and sometimes have the courage to show 
this. 



266 



The Pilgrims. 



CHAPTER XV. 



Dervishes — The Tekay — Dances — Sheik and Child — Off for Horns — 
Pilgrims from Mecca. — Girl Slaves — Bargaining — The Feast — 
Palmyra— Back to Damascus — Start for Beirout — Mulberry Trees. 

Here our travelers, for the first time met the Der- 
vishes; who are called the Mohammedan monks, but 
in just what respects they resemble them we can 
hardly tell. They are fanatical religionists, and are 
of many different orders, or sects. Some marry, and 
many are engaged in business like ordinary mortals. 

Most of the orders are distingished by a high, 
conical hat of light felt. They wear the full drawers 
and the voluminous girdle of the ancient Oriental 
costume, and over all a long, loose garment, made of 
some light material in Summer, and fur-lined in Winter. 
This is entirely without fastenings, and as they walk 
is blown back by the wind, revealing the under-gar- 
ments. 

They carry a certain number of pebbles in the 
girdle, which have a symbolic significance, and the 
girdle is bound more or less tightly, as they desire to - 
do penance in a greater or less degree. 

The Pilgrim Dervishes roam about the country, 
begging and chanting doleful songs under the latticed 
windows of the haremlik — the women's apartments in 
Turkish houses. They are dressed in a coarse cloth 
made of camel's hair; the one o-arment covers the 
head and projects a little over the face, and is bound 



Dervishes. 267 

round the crown with large hair ropes; a loose girdle 
fastens it at the waist. 




A DERVISH. 



They are so emaciated as to appear like animated 
skeletons; the skin drawn over the face, and bronzed 
by constant exposure, the scanty, ragged beard, and 
the eyes wild with fanaticism, give such a ferocious 
expression to the countenance, one involuntarily shud- 
ders on meeting them. 



268 



The Pilgrims. 



The two orders most famous abroad are the Howl- 
ing and the Whirling Dervishes. The poet Long- 
fellow, comparing Tennyson with a class of sensational 
poets, says of him, he's 

" Not of the howling dervishes of song, 
That craze the brain with their mad dance." 

But the Howling Dervishes do not dance, and the 
Whirling Dervishes do not howl! 

The Tekay — place of worship — of the Whirling 
Dervishes was near by: they meet for worship every 
Tuesday and Thursday, and visitors can usually gain 
admittance by paying a fee of a beshlik — a silver 
•coin worth about a quarter of a dollar. Our pilgrims 
visited the place; they were ushered into a large hall, 
having a highly polished floor, and enclosed by a low 
railing, close to which they took their station, sitting 
upon the matting on the floor most of the time. 

In the middle of one side of the enclosed space is 
the mihrab, or sacred place, where the Sheik placed 
himself upon a rug. The worshippers marched in, 
dressed in white — the skirt very full and nearly touch- 
ing the floor; a heavy cloak or mantle was thrown 
over the shoulders. They walked quietly and delib- 
erately around the room, turning their faces towards 
the Sheik as they pass him, and making " obeisance" 
in a very reverential manner. 

There was nothing attractive about the room — it 
was dusky and dingy. The Sheik sat in the sacred 
place, and on the wall near him still hung the spears, 
darts, knives, chaines, and pincers, with which the 
worshippers used to submit to be tortured when at the 
height of their frenzy, though this is now forbidden. 



The Tekay. 



269 



In the centre of the room there were men seated 
on rugs, who seemed to lead in the devotions. They 
repeat the ninety-nine names or attributes of God, 




counting them upon a string of ninety-nine beads, 
sometimes as many as ninety-nine times. 

The performers now stood in a row about the sides 
of the room opposite to the Sheik. There were white 
men and black men; men bronzed with out-of-door 



The Pilgrims. 



life, and those more delicate in appearance; but all 
having the peculiar expression that betokens the 
fanatic. 

They began their performance by repeating the 
confessions of faith, " La-il-la-il-lah-lah? — "There is 
one God," — bowing with each syllable forward, back- 
ward, right, left — coming to the perpendicular between 
each bow. They began slowly, and quickened the 
time of repeating the syllable until it was so rapid 
that only " il-lah" could be distinguished. 

The Sheik stamped upon the floor. The time was 
still quickened, and only was heard as a gi'oan, 

while an occasional voice, with power enough left to 
rise above the rest, shouted, " floo-yah hoof" (He-he 
is God) which sounded much like an Indian war- 
whoop. 

The frenzy increased. Garments were thrown off 
one by one, until only enough remained for decency, 
and the perspiration flowed in streams. Our Pilgrims 
almost expected to see the body entirely unhinged 
and fall in fragments on the floor! The spectators 
mostly caught the excitement, and took places at the 
ends of the rows, and beg-an the * Il-iah!" Attend- 
ants passed around from one to another, taking the 
white linen skull-caps that ' v ere saturated with per- 
spiration, and giving dry ones in their place. 

Still it went on; faces were fearfully distorted, and 
lost almost all look of humanity; the cries lost all dis- 
tinctness, and sounded like a mingling of yells, roars 
and groans. Sights and sounds were horrid, and yet 
the horror fascinated. Rollin began to feel as though 
sense and reason were about to take their departure. 



Sheik and Child. 



271 



Still it went on, the arms were outstretched, the palm 
of one hand turned upward and the other downward, 
the head was thrown on one side, the whole appear- 
ance became rapt and ecstastic, and the body was 
whirled, the toes of one foot used as a pivot, until 
the full skirt was filled out like an inflated balloon. 

Another and another caught the afflatus, until the 
whole company was pirouetting around the large hall 
in a continous circle and with constantly increasing 
velocity. They continued this without the least ap- 
parent fatigue, for such a length of time that Rollin 
began to feel that the problem of perpetual motion 
was solved, and that they would go on forever. 

The excitement of watching them was so intense, 
that it seemed impossible to look away, and when 
one after another resumed his normal state as quietly 
and gracefully as a bird flutters to the earth after an 
aerial flight, it was an immense relief to the tensely 
strung nerves of Uncle Joseph. The reeking, ex- 
hausted company, hardly able to stand without reel- 
ing, had now a sacred girdle held before them to be 
kissed and mumbled over; and various other ceremo- 
nies, without any special significance to the spectators, 
were performed, and afterwards the attention was 
attracted from the howlers to the Sheik. 

A child about six years old was brought to the 
Sheik, and placed flat upon its stomach upon the floor, 
and the Sheik stood with both feet firmly planted on 
his back. The spectators expected to see the breath 
quite pressed out of him, but he arose fresh and smil- 
ing, raised the hand of the Sheik to his lips and kissed 
it, while the father of the boy looked as though he 



272 



The Pilgrims. 



considered the child supremely blessed. Several mert 
prostrated themselves and were more or less walked 
over, and each one on rising kissed the hand of the 
Sheik. 

It was altogether a disgusting spectacle, and most 
sadly depressing to see men trying to please God by 
such debasing ceremonies. Our Pilgrims more than 
ever thanked God for the true light of the Gospel 
enjoyed in their American home. 

Uncle Joseph told Rollin that the superstitious 
veneration in which this order is held, was often the 
means of robbery. Three men dress as Dervishes, 
go into a house at midnight and begin whirling after 
their fashion. The noise rouses the family. They go 
to the room from which the noise comes, and seeing 
the Dervishes, they exclaim, "Allah dan gelmishlan!" 
(They have come from God!) 

While the family are watching the heavenly visitants, 
accomplices carry off all the furniture, and every 
other thing they can lay their hands upon in the 
rooms below; and when their work is accomplished, 
they give a signal, and the whirlers slowly approach 
the door in their dance and disappear — leaving the 
family with the impression that they have been sig- 
nally favored by Allah — until the morning brings them 
a knowledge of their loss. 

On the way back to their lodgings, our Pilgrims- 
became interested in the contemplation of the military 
affairs of the people who anciently occupied this 
country. This subject was introduced by their meet- 
ing several torch-bearers. 

Rollin expressed himself as ready for any informa- 



Ancient Warfare. 



273 



tion that Uncle Joseph could give him on the subject 
of ancient warfare. 

Uncle Joseph responded at once: — 

" In the second year after the Exodus from Egypt, 
there was a general enrollment of all who were 
between the ages of twenty and fifty. There was an 
enrollment of the Levites (whose duty it was to guard 
the tabernacle, which was 
understood to be the pal- 
ace of God, as the political 
head of the community), 
separately from the rest 
, of the people. There was 
a second enrollment, made 
in the fortieth year after 
the Exodus from Egypt. 
The enrollment was made, |§H 
as there can be no doubt, p[B 
by the genealogists, under |jl 
the direction of the prin- T 
ces. In case of war, those 1151 
who were to be called into 
actual service were taken 
from those who were thus 

enrolled, inasmuch as the whole body were not ex- 
pected to take the held, except on extraordinary occa- 
sions. 

" Whenever there was an immediate prospect of 
war, a levy of this kind was made by the genealogists. 
After the levy was fully made out, he gave public 
notice that the following persons might be excused 
from military service. 
18 




TORCH-BEARERS. 



274 



The Pilgrims. 



(1) Those who had built a house, and had not yet 
inhabited it. 

(2) Those who had planted an olive or wine gar- 
den, and had not as yet tasted the fruit of it (an ex- 
emption, consequently, which extended through the 
first five years after such planting). 

(3) Those who had bargained for a wife, but had 
not celebrated the nuptials; also those who had not 
as yet lived with their wife for a year. 

(4) The faint-hearted, who would be likely to dis- 
courage others, and who, if they had gone into a 
battle, where in those early times everything depended 
on personal prowess, would only have fallen victims. 

"The genealogists, according to law in Deut. 20:9, 
liad the right of appointing the persons who were to 
act as officers in the army; and they undoubtedly 
made it a point in their selections, to chose those who 
where called heads of families. The practice of thus 
selecting military officers ceased under the kings. 
Some of them were chosen by the king, and in other 
instances the office became permanent and hereditary 
in the heads of families 

"Both kings and generals had armor bearers. They 
were chosen from the bravest of the soldiery, and not 
only bore the arms of their masters, but were em- 
ployed to give commands to his subordinate captains, 
and were present at his side in the hour of peril. 

"The infantry, the cavalry, and the chariots of war 
were so arranged, as to make separate divisions of an 
army. The infantry were divided likewise into light- 
armed troops, and into spearmen. The light-armed 
infantery were furnished with a sling and javelin, with 



Ancient War/an 



275 



a bow, arrows, and quiver, and also, at least in later 
times, with a buckler. They fought the enemy at a 
distance. The spearmen, on the contrary, who were 
armed with spears, swords, and shields, fought hand to 
hand. The light-armed troops were generally taken 
from the tribes of Ephraim and Benjamin. 

"The Roman soldiers were divided into legions; 
each legion was divided into ten cohorts, each cohort 
into three bands, and each band into two centuries or 
hundreds. So that a legion consisted of thirty bands 

O J 

of six thousand men, and a cohort of six hundred, 
though the number was not always the same. 

" In the earliest times 
helmets were made of 
osier or rushes, and were 
in the form of bee-hives 
or skull-caps. The skins 
of the heads of animals 
were sometimes used. 
Various other materials 
were employed at differ- 
ent times. The ancient 
Egyptian helmet was usu- 
ally made of linen cloth quilted. It was thick and 
well padded, sometimes coming down to the shoulder, 
and sometimes only a little below the ear. The cloth 
used was colored green, or red, or black. The helmet 
had no crest, but the summit was an obtuse point 
ornamented with two tassels. The Assyrian helmet 
was a cap of iron terminating above in a point, and 
sometimes furnished with flaps, covered with metal 
scales and protecting the neck. The Philistine helmet, 




* 



276 The Pilgrims. 

as represented on ancient monuments, was of unique 
form. From the head-band there arose curved lines, 
by which the outline of the helmet was hollowed on 
the sides and rounded on top. The form of the 
Hebrew helmets is unknown, but they probably did 
not vary widely from the Egyptian." 

"I have read somewhere," replied Rollin, "that for 
the body, the skins of beast were probably the earliest 
protection in battle. Felt or quilted linen was also 
used. The ancient Egyptians had horizontal rows of 

metal plates well se- 
cured by brass pins. 
The ancient Assyrians- 
had scales of iron fast- 
ened on felt or linen. 
Iron rings closely lock- 
ed together were like- 
wise used by different 
nations. Scales made 
of small pieces of horn 
or hoof were also used. 
Sometimes a very serv- 
iceable armor was made 
coat of mail. G f small plates of metal, 

each having a button and a slit, fitting into a corres- 
ponding slit and button of the plate next to it. It is 
supposed that Ahab had an armor of this sort when he 
was slain ; the 'joints of the harness,' being the grooves 
or slits in the metallic plates, or the place between, 
where they did not overlap. Goliath's ' coat of mail' 
was scale armor. This kind of armor consisted of 
metallic scales rounded at the bottom and squared at 




Ancient Warfare. 



277 



the top, and sewed on linen or felt. The Philistine 
corselet covered the chest only. 

" But then I have also read that the shield or buckler 
was probably one of the earliest pieces of armor, for 
allusion is often made to it by the earliest writers. It 
was of various sizes, and usually made of light wood, 
and covered with several folds or thicknesses of stout 
hide, which were preserved and polished by frequent 
applications of oil, and often painted with circles of 
various colors or figures. Sometimes osiers, or reeds 
woven like basket-work, were used to stretch the 




WAR VESSF.r.. 



hides upon, and sometimes the shield was made either 
entirely of brass or gold, or covered with thick plates 
of those metals." 

"You are quite right, my boy," responded Uncle 
Joseph, "and the shield was held by the left arm. 
The hand passed through under two straps or thongs 
placed like an X and grasped with the fingers another 
small strap near the edge of the shield, so it was held 
with orreat firmness. A single handle of wood or 
leather in the centre was used in later times. The 
outer surface was made more or less rounding from 
the centre to the edge, and being polished smooth, 
made the arrows or darts glance of or rebound with 



278 



The Pilgrims. 



increased force; and the edges were armed with 
plates of iron, not only to strengthen them, but to 
preserve the perishable part from the dampness while 
lying upon the ground. In times of engagement, the 
shields were either held above the head, or they were 
placed together edge to edge, and thus forming a 
continuous barrier. 

"The tareet was a lareer sort of shield, the relative 
weight of which may be inferred from i Kings 10: 
16, 17. It is usually mentioned, by the sacred writers 
in connection with heavy arms, while the shield is 
spoken of with the sword, dart, and other light arms. 
It probably resembled the great shield of the Romans, 
which in some cases was four feet high, and two and 
a half feet broad, and so curved as to fit the body 
of the soldier. 

"The arms, used in fighting hand to hand, were 
originally a club and a battle hammer; but these 
weapons were but very rarely made use of by the 
Hebrews. 

"The sword, amonof the Hebrews, was fastened 
around the body by a girdle. Hence the phrase, ' to 
gird one's self with a sword means to commence 
war, and 'to loose the sword,' to finish it (1 Kings 
20: 11). The swords in use among the Hebrews ap- 
pear to have been short; some of them, however, were 
longer than others (Judg. 3: 16), and some were made 
with two edges. The sword was kept in a sheath; 
which accounts for such expressions as ' to draw the 
sword.' 

"Javelins appear to have been of two kinds. In 
explanation of this remark, it may be observed, that 



Ancient Warfare. 



279 




JAVELINS. 



the javelin is almost always mentioned in connection 
with the weapons of light-armed troops, it is indeed 
joined with the larger sort of buckler, but it is evident 
from 1 Sam. 18: 11; 19: 10; 20:33, that this weapon, 

whatever might have 
been its shape, and al- 
though it may have 
sometimes been used as 
a spear, was, neverthe- 
less, thrown, and is, ac- 
cordingly, to be ranked 
in the class of missile 
weapons. 

"The bow and arrow 
are weapons of very an- 
Archers were very numerous among the 
Hebrews, especially in the tribes of Benjamin and 
Ephraim. Weapons of this description belonged 
properly to the light-arm- 
ed troops, who are repre- 
sented as having been 
furnished with the sword, 
the buckler, and the bow. 
The Persian archers, who 
in other passages are men- 
tioned with applause, are 
spoken of likewise with 
commendation in profane 
history. 

"The bows were gener- 
ally made of wood; in a very few instances they were 
made of brass. Those of wood, however, were so 



cient origan 




ATTLE AXES. 



28o 



The Pilgrims. 



strong, that the soldiers sometimes challenged one 
another to bend their bow. In bending the bow, one 
end of it was pressed upon the ground by the foot, 
the other end was pressed down by the left hand and 
the weight of the body, and the string was adjusted 
by the right. A bow, w T hich was too slack, and which 
in consequence of it injured the person who aimed it, 
was denominated a deceitful bow. 

"The bow, in order to prevent its being injured, 
was carried in a case, made for that purpose. The 
strings for bows w T ere made of thongs of leather, of 
horse hair, and the sinews of oxen. The soldiers 
carried the bow on the left arm or shoulder. 




BOW AND ARROWS. 



"Arrows were at first made of reed; subsequently 
they were made from a light sort of wood, and were 
surmounted with an iron point. Whether they were 
sometimes dipped in poison or not, cannot, at any 
rate, be determined with much certainty from Job 6: 4, 
and Deut. 32: 24. They were more commonly, by 
means of the shrub called the broom, discharged from 
the bow, while on fire. It is in reference to this fact, 
that arrows are sometimes used for ligthnings, as in 
Deut. 32: 23, 42; Ps. 7: 13; Zech. 9: 14. 



Ancient Warfare. 



281 



" Quivers were pyramidal in point of form. They 
were suspended upon the back; so that the soldier, 
by extending his right hand over his shoulders, could 
draw out the arrows, the small part of the quiver being 
downward. 

"The sling, as there is ample 
reason for believing, may be justly 
reckoned among- the most ancient 
instruments of warfare. The per- 
sons, who used slings, were enrolled 
among the light-armed troops. 
Those slingers were accounted wor- [{/ 
thy of special credit, who like 
the Benjamites, were capable 
in slinging of using either the 
rieht hand or the left. There 
was need of almost constant 
practice, in order to secure to 
one any tolerable degree of 
success in hitting; the mark." 

After this description of arms used by this ancient 
people, Rollin again responded very enthusiastically, 
". Dear Uncle, we have lately been reading at school 
of the engines for warlike operations, which were the 
'inventions of cunning men,' erected by King Uzziah 
upon the towers and the angles of the walls of their 
cities. Of these engines, there were two kinds, the 
catapults and balistae. 

"The catapults were immense bows, which were 
/bent by means of a machine, and which threw with 
_great force, large arrows, javelins, and even beams 
of wood. The ballistae, on the other hand, may be 




A SLING ER. 



282 



The Pilgrims. 



denominated large slings, which were discharged like- 
wise by machines, and threw stones or balls of lead. 




CATAPULT. 



" Battering rams, I believe, are first mentioned by 
Ezekiel, as being an instrument of war, in use among 
the Chaldeans. But as they were certainly not in- 
vented by them, they were of a still earlier date. They 
were long and stout beams, commonly of oak, the 
ends of which were brass, shaped like the head of a 
ram. They were at first carried on the arms of the 
soldiers, and impelled against the wall. But subse- 
quently they were suspen- 
ded by means of chains 
in equilibrium, and in that 
way, by the aid of sold- 
iers, were driven against 
it. While this operation 
was going on, for the pur- 
pose of breaking through 
the wall, the soldiers, who 
— ^Mpef- were ^mediately inter- 

battering ram. ested in it, were protected 




Ancient Warfare. 



from the missiles of the enemy by a roof erected 
over them, which was covered with raw skins." 

Uncle Joseph replied, " I am indeed glad to see, 
that you are so well acquainted with these things, 
dear Rollin; but there is one other engine of war that 

we have not men- 
tioned; the annoy- 
ance, which the He- 
brews most dreaded,, 
when they met an 
enemy in war, was 
that of chariots. Men- 
common chariot. tion is made of chari- 

ots, as far back as anything is said of cavalry, but they 
could not be used, except on the plain country. After 
the time of Solomon, the Hebrews always kept such 
chariots, and placed great reliance upon them. Cha- 
riots of war, like all 
others in the an- 
cienttimes,of which 
we are speaking, 
were supported on 
two wheels only, 
and were eener- 
ally drawn by two 
horses, though 
sometimes by three 

or four a breast. sword-armed chartots. 

The combatant stood upright upon the chariot. 
Xenophon mentions chariots, invented by Cyrus, from 
each one of which twenty men could fight. They 
resembled towers. The end of the pole of some 





284 



The Pilgrims. 



chariots, and the end of the axles were armed with 
iron scythes, which were driven with vast force among 
the enemy, and made great slaughter." 




SOLDIER IN FULL ARMOR. 



As a preparation for a journey to Horns which they 
were now medidating, uncle Joseph purchased two 
sets of the common apparel worn by the Arabs, which 
cost only a trifle, and was likely to save them from 
the extortion regularly practiced upon all travellers 
supposed to be rich. It consisted of coarse linen 
drawers, a cloak, small linen cap, and a red woolen 
roller to bind it, with leather sandals. 

Thus equipped, they set out for Horns, and had the 
satisfaction to meet a very extensive caravan of pil- 
grims from Mecca, which formed a pleasing and curious 



Off for Horns, 



285 



sight, although it was painful to a reflecting mind to 
think of their late destination. There were camels, 
horses and mules, all of which had bells attached to 
them, which made a " merry noise." Among these 
were several tackterwans, the only vehicle in the East 
which supplies the place of four wheel carriages. 
They resemble a sedan chair, supported before and 
behind by horses instead of men. Others, resembling 




MOHAMMEDAN CEMETERY. 



two children's cradles, are fitted like panniers on the 
backs of camels. The green flag, the prophet's ban- 
ner, preceded them. Not long afterwards they passed 
a party, also bound for Damascus, that made their 
heart ache with the sincerest pity. This was a com- 
pany of Georgian girls, bought or stolen from their 
native country, and about to be sold as slaves. This 
caravan having halted while a rich merchant bar- 
gained for a young girl, who was one of two sisters,. 



286 



The Pilgrims. 



our travellers had an opportunity of observing tnem, 
and were exceedingly struck by the almost frantic 
grief of the poor creature about to be torn from her 
sister and her companions. They were all of great 
personal beauty, so far as they could see, having fine 
dark eyes, regular, small features, and a clear com- 
plexion of exquisite beauty. The sight of their afflic- 
tion, their age and helplessness, made such an im- 
pression on the mind of Uncle Joseph, and brought 
his own dear nieces so strongly to his remembrance, 
that he resolved, as soon as- ever the present ex- 
pedition was accomplished, he would lose no time in 
returning" to his native land, and resuming- his duties 
in social life, and so sincerely did Rollin unite in the 
wish of beholding" his beloved sisters, that he felt 
almost sorry that they were not on the road to the 
sea, rather than the desert, that they might embark 
at once for home. 

They met with a khan the first and second days 
of their journey to Horns, after which they were 
compelled to trust to casual assistance, and on the 
third day's journey, when worn out with fatigue and 
drenched with rain, entreated, in vain, to be taken in 
through a whole village, till they arrived at the last 
house in it, when the inhabitants not only admitted, 
but entertained them without expecting reward. Uncle 
Joseph would not, however, depart without generously 
recompensing them, both as an encouragement to 
themselves and a lesson to their churlish neighbors. 

Arrived at Horns, their first care was to meet those 
Arabs who had been named to them as the likliest 
persons to engage their safe conduct, and accordingly 



At Horns. 



287 



five Arabs, who boasted that they had accompanied 
many persons of rank, made their appearance, and 
sitting down with great composure, began to smoke 
their pipes, and named their terms. The chief of 
these was named Salec, a lad of fifteen, but who 
appeared as fond of flus (money) as the oldest among 
them. He named successively two thousand piastres, 




BEDOUIN FAMILY. 



one thousand, eight hundred, and when all these offers 
were negatived, retreated in great dudgeon, and for 
several days our travelers considered that they had 
taken the present journey in vain. 

At this time, a Christian came to them and offered 
to conduct them to Tadmor, with two friends on 
whom he could rely, making light of the whole affair; 
and Rollin felt exceedingly anxious that his uncle 



288 



TJie Pilgrims. 



should close with this offer. Uncle Joseph could not, 
however, reflect on the character of the Arabs, with- 
out being aware that, when not engaged as friends, 
they could not fail to be alarming as enemies, and, 
although he did not doubt that they magnified both 
the danger and the distance, in order to enhance the 
price of their services, yet he could not believe this 
man spoke the truth, in undervaluing them so much, 
after all which had been said by their informers at Da- 
mascus. Whilst this matter was debating, the Arabs 
again made their appearance, and after indicating 
much surprise that they had not returned to Damas- 
cus, they again entered on their system of driving a 
bargain. 

After much prevarication, in which every possible 
means of extorting money was resorted to, they at 
last agreed to take six hundred piastres, which were 
not to be paid until their return to Horns, and both 
the travelers stripped before them to convince them 
that they had no property of which they could be 
robbed. 

With this precaution, after a wearisome delay of 
three weeks, in which their hearts were now often on 
the wing for their far distant home, they at last set out 
on this expedition, with the sons of Ishmael for their 
guides and guardians. 

For this journey they had three camels and as 
many conductors, with two skin bottles of milk, and 
goat skin coats greased to keep out the rain. They 
traveled many hours, over a pleasant, healthful coun- 
try, full of aromatic shrubs, there being no track 
whatever, nor any objects which could answer the 



Arabiaji Camp. 



289 



purposes of direction, so that it soon became evident, 
how entirely they were dependent on their guides. 

When they had thus traveled four or five hours, 
one of the men hastened on in advance and was 
presently out of sight, but on arriving at the place to 
which he had hastened, they found he had already 
collected brushwood and made a fire near a spring, 
where they now stopped to eat their breakfast. This 
was done by dipping the bread they had brought into 
butter and honey, melted together. The moment their 
meal was ended, the Arabs again addressed them- 
selves to their journey, and they could not forbear 
laughing at one, who, affecting to guard them from 
the attacks of robbers, vigilantly reconnoitred from 
every height, being all the time unprovided with any 
powder, and armed only with a useless weapon. 

Late in the afternoon they reached the camp of the 
Arabs, who furnished their escort, where an aged 
Sheik and his two sons received them as guests, but 
on surveying their clothing, seemed inclined to con- 
sider them persons of no importance. 

From their manners and the number of questions 
put to their guides, they appeared to be objects of 
suspicion, and they questioned Uncle Joseph espesci- 
ally as to his errand, stipulating for a share of the 
treasure, which they seemed certain was the object 
of his search at Palmyra. At length they assigned 
them a place in the tent at a distance from their own 
body, and served them with a share of some roasted 
partridges by throwing a leg and wing to each, and 
afterwards giving them bread and honey with butter, 
which one of the Arabs mixed together with his 

19 



290 



The Pilgrims. 



hands, devouring a plentiful portion of it as his own 
share at the same time. At sunset, the whole party 
were summoned to prayers, and it was pleasant to 
see this ferocious people join in the devotion with 
the utmost solemnity, bowing down and kissing the 
ground together. 

The entire dependence they were in to these peo- 
ple, and the singularity of the situation, for some time 
indisposed them to sleep, and at the last they were 
overtaken by it, after recommending themselves to 
that divine eye which is alike upon the city and the 
desert, On awaking in the morning, they found a 
great number assembled in the tent, and were aware 
that there was an accession of euests, and on follow- 
inor the Sheik according to his desire, out of the 
tent, more appeared coming in from all quarters, and 
they understood that a feast was in preparation. 

In due time, a large party was seated, with much 
order and propriety, the old Sheik being at the 
head of a company composed of Sheiks only, a rope 
being drawn between them and the rest of the people. 
Immense platters of rice and camel's flesh were placed 
at equal distances, and when the Sheiks had eaten, 
they were then given to the rest. They helped our 
friends to the hump, which is considered the best, and 
although the grain is exceedingly coarse, they found 
the meat savory and tender, and made a good break- 
fast. They observed that the people, when regaled, 
had portions given to them of a certain quantity to 
each tent, by which the women and children were 
also provided for, and from the quantity so disposed 
of, thought several camels had been killed for the 



Palmyra. 291 

purpose. Altogether the scene was very novel and 
■amusing-, and though it delayed their journey some 
hours, they could not regret having witnessed it. 




PALMYRA PALMS. 



The next night they slept under a tent provided by 
their guard, which was increased from the last station, 
and, rising very early the following day, brought them 
within three to the object of their search. The first 
view of Palmyra, as seen from the Valley of the 
Tombs, by which they approached it, was so beautiful 



2 9 2 



The Pilgrims. 



and magnificent as absolutely to fascinate them and 
induce them to think all their trouble in getting there 
overpaid in a moment. They had been now several 
days without seeing a single building of any kind, 
which rendered a city in a desert the more astonish- 
ing and effective, and the snow-white appearance of 
innumerable columns and other buildings, contrasted 
with the yellow sand, produced a very striking effect. 
On arriving in the midst of these famous ruins, much 
of their first sensations faded, for, splendid as the 
whole appeared, yet on examination each particular 
object was less interesting than they expected, and 
although fine, the ruins were decidedly inferior to 
those at Baalbeck, 

Our Pilgrims now returned to Damascus over the 
same route that they had gone to Tadmor, and after 
having satisfied themselves more fully with the sights 
of Damascus, they started for Beirout. A magnificent 
road extends from Damascus to Beirout, which was. 
built and is operated by a French company. A 
regular diligence leaves each city at 4.30 o'clock in 
the morning, and arrives at the opposite terminus at 
six o'clock, approximately, in the evening. Another, 
carrying the mails, leaves at about dusk from either 
city. Then there are private barouches built for moun- 
tain travel, which parties may hire in order to be by 
themselves, with the right to change horses at each 
station. The fare by the day coach is 1 01 piasters, 
or about 21 francs ($4.25) on the banquette or cano- 
pied top, which is altogether the pleasantest place 
upon which to ride, as it affords a view of the lofty, 
though not specially beautiful mountains. The dill- 



Beirout. 



293 



gence started with a crack of the long whip, just at 
the hour prescribed. A phalanx of six powerful 
horses, arranged in three abreast, was the motive 
power. Every five or eight miles, according to the 
character of the country, there was a change of 




MULBERRY TREE. 



horses, which was promptly effected. Where the 
gradients in the road were sharpest the horses were 
•displaced with mules, the best animals always being 
provided, in order to shorten the time of the ascent. 
Our pilgrims took the diligence at 4.30 in the mor- 



294 



The Pilgrims. 



ning, and first ascended the Anti-Lebanon range of 
mountains, about 1,400 feet above Damascus, and 
then descended into the valley between the Lebanon 
and Anti-Lebanon, which is about ten miles wide and 
2,500 feet above Beirout; after crossing this valley r . 
which bears the name of Coelo-Syria, they ascended 
the Lebanon rano-e to a height of ^,000 feet above 
Beirout, and then began to descend towards the 
Mediterranean Sea. The roadside down the descent 
was covered with stumpy evergreen and mulberry 
plantations. 

These mulberry trees are only a few feet in height,, 
and terminate in a small boquet of gnarled twigs and 
bright foliage. The silk worms, for the sake of which 
these trees are cultivated, keep the branches gnawed 
down, and thus the leaves are always fresh and tender. 
Every turn brought Beirout and the Mediterranean 
coast line, for miles north and south, into view. And 
just at six o'clock in the evening the diligence rolled 
into the streets of Beirout. 

Beirout is situated on the extreme western point of 
a small ran°"e of hills that run down from the main 
chain of Lebanon to the sea, and on both sides of the 
city lie the ruins of the ancient Berytus. Some have 
incorrectly supposed it to be the Berothah of Ezek. 
47- 1 6, but the prophet seems to refer to an inland 
town, somewhere east of Lebanon. The port of Bei- 
rout is now useless, and vessels can anchor only in 
the open road. It was once a place of great commer- 
cial importance, and even yet its streets are filled with 
as busy a crowd as can be found in many of our large 
cities. 



296 



The Pilgrims. 



CHAPTER XVI. 



Sidon ahead — The walls— Bound for Tyre— Insular Tyre — Ezekial's 
words — Tomb of Hiram — Acre— St. Jean — Pasha of Djezza — 
Mount Carmel — Cesarea. 

Leaving Beirout, in the early morning, our pilgrims 
turned their faces toward Sidon. After traveling 
about twenty-five miles along the sea-coast, they saw 
the city, a short distance ahead, overlooked by a peak 
of mount Lebanon. 

" Sidon is very ancient," said Uncle Joseph, "for 
we find it a great city in the days of Joshua, being 
founded by the eldest son of Canaan. Various arts 
and sciences have taken their rise from the place 
before us." 

"Yes," replied Rollin, "I have learned something 
of this country in school. Phoenicia is known as hav- 
ing made the earliest progress in civilization and the 
arts. Navigation is the accredited invention of this 
ancient people, and their ships became so famous that 
Phoenicia has been called 1 the mother of commerce,' 
and ' the Great Britain of the olden times.' The 
Greeks ascribe to Cadmus, a Phoenician, the origin 
of letters, and we learn from the Scriptures that Tynan 
artists presided over the building of the most glorious 
structure mentioned in the Bible, the temple of Solo- 
mon. 

"The history of this ancient people comprises four 
great periods, the first dating from their earliest im- 
migration to about 1500 b. c, when Sidon began to 



298 



The Pilgrims. 



take the lead of their commerce. The second period 
dates from the conquest of Palestine by the Hebrews, 
when Sidon was already acknowledged as ' the first- 
born of Canaan,' down to the time when the rival 
city of Tyre began to claim precedence over her elder- 
sister. This sudden reversal of position was doubt- 
lessly due to the defeat of the Sidonians by ' the king- 
of Askalon,' about the year 1200 b. c, in consequence 
of which the chief families of Sidon emigrated in their 
ships to Tyre, the k island city ' which they founded. 
In the eleventh century, in the days of Samuel, ' the 
princes of the Tyrians ' begin to be spoken of as the 
representatives of Phoenician power instead of Sidon- 
ians. 

" During this third period Phoenicia was in the 
zenith of her power. Her ships covered the seas, 
her commerce embraced the whole earth, and her 
colonies, with the splendid cities they founded, flour- 
ished far and near. In the space of three centuries — 
1300 to 1000 B.C. — this people had covered all the 
coasts and islands of the Mediterranean with their 
forts and their factories, had found their way through 
the Strait of Gibraltar into Spain, up the Atlantic to 
the Scilly Islands and the British coast, and by the 
Red Sea to the Indies, while their ships, ploughing 
the main in all directions, found everywhere their own. 
ports. 

" Of such a country and such a nation, Sidon, or 
Zidon, the ancient city founded soon after the flood 
by Sidon, the eldest son of Canaan, and great-grand- 
son of Noah, was long the splendid metropolis. It is 
spoken of in Joshua on two occasions as ' Great 



Si don. 



299 



Sidon,' or the ' Metropolis Sidon,' an appellation 
well merited by its wealth and importance among the 
nations. Its Hebrew name, Tsidon, which signifies 
'fishing,' or 'The Fishery,' is now changed to 
Saida. It is situated in this narrow plain between 
Lebanon and the sea, about twenty English miles 
north of its younger sister Tyre, that was peopled 
originally by colonists from Sidon. Both these cities 
lay within the lot of Asher, though this tribe never 
really possessed them The Israelites were probably 
unwillinor, as well as unable, to drive out these rich 
and powerful traders from their domain, and later 
both David and Solomon sought their aid as seamen 
and their skill as architects. Hence the close alliance 
and the friendly relations existing between the two 
nations, each needing what the other could readily 
supply. In their commercial enterprises in the days 
of Solomon the supercargoes belonged to him, while 
the pilots and mariners were Hiram's. 

" One of the chief products of Sidon was glass, and 
her people, it is said, were familiar with most of our 
own contrivances, as the blowpipe, the lathe, and the 
graver. Sidonian glass was held in the highest repute 
long after the manufacture had been introduced by 
other nations. Scarcely less was the fame of this 
ancient people in metallurgy. In Lebanon and Cyprus 
they dug copper ; in Thasos, Herodotus says, they 
overturned a whole mountain in searching- for o-old ; 
and the founding of brass must have reached a high 
degree of excellence to enable Hiram to execute such 
works for Solomon's temple as are described in the 
Bible." 



3°° 



The Pilgrims. 



" My dear Rollin," responded Uncle Joseph, "I am 
very glad to see you so well acquainted with this 
.ancient people. To Sidon is further attributed the 
pre-eminence in the glyptic and plastic arts ; and the 
artisans furnished to Solomon were 1 skillful workers 
in gold and silver, in brass and iron, in purple and 
blue, in stone and timber, in fine linen, and in the 
graving of precious stones.' Their vessels, originally 
simple rafts, gradually developed until their fleets 
comprised round ships or gauli for coasting, war- 
galleys or triremes, and long-built, fifty-oared craft 
adapted both for rapid sailing and for rowing. The 
internal arrangement of their vessels was perfect, and 
excited both the wonder and admiration of the Greeks 
by their splendid adaptation at once for navigation, 
freight, and defence. 

" Their extraordinary three years' voyage of dis- 
covery, undertaken in the service of Necho, around 
Africa, going out by way of the Red Sea, and return- 
ing by the Straits of Gibraltar, proclaims their wondr- 
ous nautical skill and enterprise even more than their 
voyages in the service of Solomon. Of this ' people 
by the sea,' so nobly endowed, so glorious in their 
palmy days, but little yet remains of their former 
greatness. 

"Of their architecture, grand as it was, evincing no 
less taste fo'r sculptured beauty than appreciation 
of massive strength, we have now only a few ruins — 
which we shall no doubt see — sad lessons of the fleeting 
nature of all human power and glory. Yet what an 
interest these wave-washed ruins possess to the Bible 
student, so many associations connect them with the 



Sidon, 



301 



narratives of both the Old Scriptures and the new., 
Far back to the time of the establishment of the 
Israelites in the 1 Land of Promise,' we have the sad 
story of the children of Dan possessing themselves, 
by violence, of the city of Laish, the abode of a people 
that 'dwelt careless, after the manner of the Zidon- 
ians, quiet and secure ; ' smiting them ' with the edge 
of the sword,' and burning their city, because 'there 
was no deliverer, because it was far from Zidon 
there building a city, setting up the graven images 
they had stolen from Micah, and living in idolatry, 
' all the time the house of God was in Shiloh.' Other 
memories come up of Elijah's miracle at Zarephath, a 
city of Sidon, of our Lord's interview with the Syro- 
Phcenician woman, and Paul"s visit on his way to 
Rome. A sad, prophetic interest also attaches to their 
history, and the infallible truth of God's word is writ- 
ten upon their present desolation. Though ' exalted 
to heaven ' in point of privilege, of power, and worldly 
glory, now but a miserable town remains, dirty and 
uncomely, with a degraded population of less than 
6000, an unimportant trade in cotton, silk, and nut- 
galls, and the visitor seeks in vain for a vestige of its 
former greatness amid the filth and squalor of mud 
hovels, yelping curs, and idle, untaught children. 
Who ever forgot God and prospered ?" 

They now entered this ancient city, at this time 
reduced to a small, miserable-looking town, rising 
gradually from the sea shore, and containing about 
six thousand inhabitants. They found, notwithstand- 
ing the deplorable air it wore, that this place had 
yet a pretty considerable trade in raw silk, dyeing 



302 The Pilgrims, 



Tyre. 



303 



guady colors, and also in boots, shoes, and slippers 
of morocco leather. The walls are in a state of com- 
plete delapidation, as is the castle, said to be founded 
by a king of France ; but the gardens are beautiful 
and luxuriant, which makes it look pleasant at a dis- 
tance. 

Leaving Sidon, they continued southward, bound 
for Tyre, about twenty miles distant. Their first halt 
was at a khan, about half way to the last named place, 
and from it they had a view of Zarephath, the village 
where Elijah was entertained by a widow, whose bag 
of meal and cruse of oil he miraculously sustained, 
and whose dead child he restored. 

In the afternoon, our travelers proceeded on their 
way, reaching Tyre in the early evening. "As Tyre," 
said Uncle Joseph, "was, perhaps, the most proud 
and flourishing of all the cities of old, so were some 
of the most awful prophecies denounced against it, 
and they are at this day fulfilled in the most striking 
manner. You must observe, Rollin, that there were 
originally two Tyres ; Insular Tyre, confined to a 
small, rocky Island, and the Continental Tyre, a city 
of vast extent, about half a mile from the sea, which 
was demolished by Nebuchadnezzar, the scattered ruins 
of which measured nineteen miles in circumference. 
And this, I apprehend, is the city of which Ezekiel 
says, ' Thou shalt be built no more ; though thou be 
sought for, there shall be none to find thee;' there- 
fore, I suppose, we shall have little success in trying, 
but I am still more desirous of seeing that Tyre 
which so wonderfully resisted Alexander the Great, 
for I have always considered the siege of Tyre as the 



304 



The Pilgrims. 



most remarkable thing- in the conqueror's career of 
victory." 

" Dear Uncle," responded Rollin, " I should like to 
hear more of the destruction of Tyre/' 

"Certainly," replied Uncle Joseph. "Tyre was the 
capital of Phoenicia, this narrow strip of country on 
the sea-coast. It was the greatest commercial city in 
the world. Carrying on rich trade with every part 
of Asia, Africa, and Europe, it had become exceed- 
ingly magnificent and powerful. It was built upon a 
peninsula, so that the sea surrounded it on all sides, 
except one, and formed an excellent harbor. Behind 
it rose the mountains of Lebanon, the same as to-day 
in some parts sharp and rocky, in others culti- 
vated, and in others covered with majestic cedars. 
Before it was the Mediterranean, and a spacious har- 
bor filled with beautiful ships. It was an ancient place, 
and had been founded by the Sidonians. An army 
of men were constantly stationed around the walls 
and towers to defend them against all attacks. The 
merchants were passing swiftly from street to street. 
Sailors were loading and unloading ships at the 
wharves, and the voice of joy and mirth, the sound of 
the harp and viol, was heard from the splendid dwell- 
ings of the rich inhabitants. Companies of merchants 
were continually arriving, both by sea and land ; for 
fairs were held there, in which the productions of 
every part of the world were sold or exchanged for 
each other. The Tyrians themselves manufactured 
many articles of merchandise. Among others were 
cloths, which they dyed of rich purple color with a 
substance procured from a particular kind of fish, that 



3°5 



was caught in that part of the Mediterranean Sea. 
Ithobal, the king of Tyre, was a proud and haughty 
monarch, who, as Ezekiel said in one of his prophe- 
cies, thought himself wiser than Daniel. He was 
probably a descendant of that Ithobal, king of Tyre, 
who was father to Jezebel, the wife of Ahab, king 
of Israel, and great-grandfather of Dido, who founded 
the city of Carthage, in Africa. 

" Nebuchadnezzar now reigned over the greatest 
part of Asia. One would think that he might have 
been willing to let the city of Tyre enjoy its trade and 
its richess in peace. But no ; like most great kings 
and generals, he was not satisfied as long as any place 
remained unconquered. Besides, God had determined 
that Tyre should be destroyed. He predicted it by 
his Prophets, Isaiah and Ezekiel. He emyloyed Ne- 
buchadnezzar to execute his threatenings, but the king 
of Babylon knew it not, and only meant to gratify his 
own ambition. He marched with his army against 
Tyre, but found it already and resolutely defended by 
the inhabitants, and their hired soldiers. He first 
caused a ditch to be dug between his army and the 
city. The earth that was taken from the ditch was 
piled up by the side of it, forming- a high wall. On 
this wall towers were built, from which the soldiers 
could keep watch of the gates of the city, and shoot 
their arrows at any who came out of them. Ne- 
buchadnezzar also threw up a high mound of earth in 
front of the city. It extended from the ditch towards 
the walls of Tyre, and was made strong by being 
surrounded, and partly covered, with heavy beams 
of timber. Part of his army were stationed on this 
20 



306 



The Pilgrims. 



mound, with various military engines, by means of 
which they drew stones and other weapons into the 
city. Besides these, they used the crow, which was 
a long pole, with a crooked and forked piece of iron 
on the end. They hooked this on to the battlements 
of the city wall, and pulled back with great violence, 
tearing away the stones and mortar of the walls. The 
battering-ram, of which we have before conversed, 
was a long, stout beam of oak, one end of which was 
made of brass, or iron, and shaped like the head of a 
ram. This end projected out of a kind of a house, 
with a tower on the top. This house was placed on 
wheels, and covered with skins. A sufficient number 
of soldiers were placed in it, and it was then driven 
towards the walls. When it came near the walls, the 
soldiers drove the head of the ram repeatedly, and 
with great violence, against them, endeavoring 1 to 
make an opening at wich the besiegers might enter. 
The garrison, or soldiers who defended the city walls, 
exerted themselves to the utmost to repel the attacks 
of the Babylonians. From the towers upon the walls 
they were constantly sending their arrows and javelins 
into the camp of Nebuchadnezzar. For thirteen years 
he besieged the city ; at length the Tyrians could 
resist no longer. They fled, with the greater part of 
their property, to an island about half a mile from the 
city, where they afterwards built another city, which 
they called Tyre. 

"It was customary when a city was taken, for the 
soldiers to plunder it of every thing which they could 
find. In this way they were rewarded for their labor 
and danger in fighting against it. But when Ne- 



Tyre. 307 

buchadnezzar with his army marched into the city 
of Tyre, they found that all the most valuable property 
of the inhabitants had been removed. Nebuchadnez- 
zar's army was composed, not only of Chaldeans, but 
of soldiers from the different countries which he had 
previously conquered. During the thirteen years' 
siege, the fatigues and distresses of the soldiers had 
been so great that the prophet Ezekiel said, ' every 
head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled,' 
by wearing their armor so long, and enduring so 
many hardships. They were much disappointed at 
finding the city stripped of all its silver, and gold, 
* and merchandise. In order to reward them for their 
patience and courage, Nebuchadnezzar determined to 
march into Egypt. After completely subduing all the 
neighboring countries, he fought against Egypt, and 
conquered and ravaged every part of it, from the 
mouths of the Nile to Syene, on the borders of Ethio- 
pia. He also conquered the whole of the north of 
Africa, and crossed over into Spain. Having loaded 
himself and his army with the spoils of these rich 
countries, he returned to Babylon. This was nineteen 
years after the destruction of Jerusalem. 

"After this Tyre seems to have been forgotten for 
about seventy years, as foretold by Isaiah in 23: 15; 
but in the year b. c. 332, Tyre, which had become a 
flourishing emporium for all the kingdoms of the 
world upon the face of the earth, ' and heaped up sil- 
ver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the 
streets,' was assailed by Alexander the Great in the 
midst of his Oriental career of conquest. It is doubt- 
ful whether the city on the mainland had been rebuilt; 



3 o8 



The Pilgrims. 



if so, it yielded at once to the youthful conqueror- 
But the insular city sustained a siege of seven months,, 
and was at length taken by means of a mole or cause- 
way, by which the island was turned into a peninsula, 
and rendered accessible by land forces. In construct- 
ing this mole, Alexander made use of the ruins of the 
old city, and thereby fulfilled two prophecies. One 
was (Ezek. 26, 12), 'And they shall lay thy stones and 
thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water/ 
The other was (ver. 21), 'And thou shalt be no more: 
though thou be sought for, yet shalt thou never oe- 
found again, saith the Lord God.' So utterly were 
the ruins of old Tyre thrown into the sea, that the 
exact site is confessedly undeterminable, although the 
ruins of nearly fifty cities near Rome, which perished 
almost 2500 years ago, testify that the extinction of 
every trace of a city is a sort of a miracle. Moreover, 
Alexander laid Tyre in ashes: thus accomplishing the 
prediction of Zechariah (9: 4), ' She shall be devoured 
with fire.' Besides, as ships from Tyre, out on a three 
years' voyage, returned to find that city razed to the 
ground which they had left and looked to find once 
more in the perfection of beauty, there is a significance 
in the prophecy of Isaiah not at first obvious (23: 1, 
14): 'Howl, ye ships of Tarshish; for it is laid waste, 
so that there is no house, no entering in. Howl, ye 
ships of Tarshish, for your strength is laid waste.' 

"The mole of Alexander has prevented Tyre from 
becoming insulated again. The revival of the city 
was long retarded by the rivalship of the newly- 
founded Alexandria, and by other causes, so that, 
although a ship in which Paul sailed was there to- 



Tyre. 309 

unlade her burden (Acts 21: 3), Pliny, who wrote in 
the first century, after relating how great it had been, 
and that its ruins were nineteen miles in circuit, adds, 
' at this clay all its nobility consists in oysters and pur- 
ple ' (v. 17). But in the times of Jerome, the latter 
half of the century, it had so far revived that he was 
embarrassed in commenting on Ezek. 24: 14, 'Thou 
shalt be built no more;' and at last interprets the 
meaning to be, that it should not again become an 
independent state, but remain subject to the Mace- 
donian, Seleucian, Roman, or some other power. But 
time was a better commentator, or has now made 
Sabbath school children better commentators than 
St. Jerome. 

" The possession of Tyre was often afterwards con- 
tested as if it were a key to unlock a kingdom; it was 
beleaguered more than once during- the crusades, 
was the burial-place of the German Emperor Barba- 
rossa, and, remaining in European hands till 1291, 
was almost the last place in Asia which the chivalry 
of the West yielded to the Moslems. Its fortifications, 
which were almost impregnable, were demolished, 
and it has never since been a place of consequence. 
Travelers of every succeeding century describe it as 
a heap of ruins, broken arches and vaults, tottering 
walls and towers, with a few starveling wretches 
housing- amid the rubbish. A chief of the Druses, in- 
deed, attempted to rebuild it two hundred years ago, 
but in vain. Maundrell, in 1694, found 'not so much 
as one entire house left.' In Pococke's day (1738) it 
was a place of export for grain, but contained only 
two or three Christian families and a few other in- 



The Pilgrims. 



habitants. In 1 766 a part of the peninsula was walled, 
and a town named Sur founded, which still exists, and 
exports tobacco, cotton, wool, and wood. Yet its 
population has never exceeded three thousand souls. 
It cannot compete with its neighbor Beirout; its 
harbor is navigable only by boats, and becomes more 
and more shallow every year. It was half ruined by 
an eartquake in 1837." 

Our travelers took a walk along the shore of the 
peninsula, part of which is now unoccupied, except as 
" a place to spread nets upon," musing upon the pride 
and fall of ancient Tyre. Here was the little isle, 
once covered by her palaces and surrounded by her 
fleets: but alas! thy riches and thy fame, thy mer- 
chandise, thy mariners and thy pilots, thy caulkers, 
and the occupiers of thy merchandise that were in 
thee, — where are they? Tyre has indeed become like 
" the top of a rock." The sole tokens of her more 
ancient splendor — columns of red and grey granite, 
sometimes forty or fifty heaped together, or marble 
pillars — lie broken and strewed beneath the waves in 
the midst of the sea; and the hovels that now nestle 
upon a portion of her site present no contradiction 
of the dread decree, "Thou shalt be built no more." 

Uncle Joseph remarked once more: "The downfall 
and permanent desolation of Tyre is one of the most 
memorable accomplishments of prophecy which the 
annals of the world exhibit. The sins which sealed 
its ruin were, in the words of the sacred writers, these; 
' Because that Tyrus hath said against Jerusalem, 
Aha, she is broken that was the gates of the people; 
she is turned unto me; I shall be replenished now she 



Tomb of Hiram. 



is laid waste' (Ezek. 26 : 2). ' Because thy heart is 
lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the 
seat of God, in the midst of the seas' (28: 2). 'The 
children also of Judah and the children of Jerusalem 
have ye sold unto the Grecians that ye might remove 
them far from their border' " ( Joel 3: 6). 

No place can be more favorably situated for com- 
merce, and the port which, for so many centuries, gave 
it the sovereignty of the ocean, even now displayed 
many large ships riding at anchor; but on turning from 
this view so miserable appeared all around them, so 
awful the impression of the Divine displeasure, that 
they gladly left it early the following day, and directed 
their course to Mount Carmel. 

But a short distance from Tyre our pilgrims paused 
long enough to view the tomb of Hiram. Uncle 
Joseph said: "You remember, dear Rollin, that 
Hiram, the king of Tyre, sent workmen and material 
to Jerusalem, first to build a palace for David, and 
again to build the Temple of Solomon, with whom 
he had a treaty of peace and commerce. He ad- 
mitted the ships of Solomon sailing from Joppa, to a 
share in the profitable trade of the Mediterranean, 
and Jewish sailors, under the guidance of Tyrians, 
were taught to bring the gold of India to Solomon's 
two ports on the Red Sea. Dius, the Phoenician his- 
torian, and Menander of Ephesus, assign to Hiram a 
prosperous reign of thirty-four years, and relate that 
his father was Abibal, his son and successor Baleazar." 

They reached Acre late, but had the satisfaction of 
finding a respectable khan in which to lodge for the 
night. 



312 



The Pilgrims. 



This place is frequently called St. Jean d'Acre, 
especially by Europeans; it was anciently called 
Accho and is situated on the shores of the Mediter- 
ranean Sea, and may be called the key of the Holy 
Land. It has of late years become of peculiar in- 
terest to the Britons, from being the place where an 
effectual check was given to the career of Bonaparte 
in the East, by Sir Sidney Smith, who, in the Tiger, 
84 guns, captured a whole French flotilla laden with 
artillery, and compelled the great general, after a 
most disastrous contest, to abandon the siege and 
ultimately to quit Syria. 

The town, in the form of a bow, lies at the end of 
a bay in the neighborhood of Mount Carmel, and, 
during the crusades, was the scene of much bloody 
contention. Being given by Richard of England to 
the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, their title, 
St. Jean, was added to its name, but from them it 
was taken, after a terrible siege by the Turks in 1291, 
and has remained ever since in their power, sinking 
by degrees into insignificance, although it now con- 
tains ten thousand inhabitants. 

Uncle Joseph said, "Do you not remember, Rollin, 
of reading about the Pacha of Djezzar, whose horrible 
cruelties left multitudes of maimed objects? Some 
had their eyes plucked out by his orders; others their 
noses cut off; some had an arm amputated, some their 
noses split. Such was the number of atrocities com- 
mitted by this horrible wretch, that the place was ren- 
dered hateful and distressing to the highest degree 
by the memorials of his savage nature, for which the 
improvements he made afforded no compensation. 



Cesarea. 313 

He had a great number of wives, but how many, 
could not be ascertained, as he sacrificed their lives 
on the slightest pretensions with his own hands, and 
once, on a mere surmise of jealousy, caused forty 
persons in his seraglio to be cut into pieces with 
swords. 

"One of his soldiers having drank some milk with- 
out paying for it, he ordered that he should be ripped 
open; and on suspecting that the custom-house officers 




CESAREA. 



had defrauded him, he chose out about sixty, whom 
he placed in the spot where his soldiers performed 
their military manoeuvres, and at a signal given, the 
heads of these unhappy men were all chopped off 
and their bodies left exposed on the ground, to be the 
prey of the fowls of the air. His own physician 
having, in some instance, incurred his displeasure, he 
commanded his nose to be cut off, and, on perceiving 
that the executioner had (from pity and respect for a 



3H 



The Pilgrims. 



most valuable man) only cut off the end of the phy- 
sician's nose, the brutal governor snatched up a 
large knife, and with his own hands, cut off the 
whole of the executioner's nose. Unhappily he lived 
to the age of eighty, and was found one morning 
dead of apoplexy by his attendants, having under his 
pillow a list of many persons' names whose heads 
were to have been cut off on the following day. He 
was said to have been a strong, well-made man, with 
a lonsf, white beard, and a ferocious countenance. He 
had great revenues, and his avarice, like his cruelty,, 
was unbounded." 

From Accho they proceeded to Mount Carmel, 
about ten miles distant, which they found difficult of 
ascent, and visited a convent, now deserted, built on 
the spot where, it is supposed, Elijah fixed his resi- 
dence, and gathered the worshipers of Baal; the place 
was occupied as a hospital by the French during the 
sieee of Accho. 

Rollin was so much impressed with the scenes at 
Mount Carmel that he opened his Bibel and begged 
leave to read aloud of the wonderful works of the 
great prophet Elijah. 

"And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that 
Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel? 
And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, 
and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the 
commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed 
Baalim. Now therefore send, and gather to me all 
Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal 
four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves 
four hundred, which eat at Jezebel's table. So Ahab 



Mount CarmeL 



315 



sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the 
prophets together unto mount Carmel. And Elijah 
came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye 
between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow 
him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people 
answered him not a word. Then said Elijah unto the 
people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the Lord;, 




but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men. 
Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them 
choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, 
and lay it on wood, and put no fire under; and I will 
dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put 
no fire under; and call ye on the name of your 
gods, and I will on the name of the Lord ; and 
the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. 



316 



The Pilgrims. 



And all the people answered and said, It is well 
spoken. And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, 
Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it 
first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your 
gods, but put no fire under. And they took the bul- 
lock, which was given them, and they dressed it, and 
called on the name of Baal from morning even until 
noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no 
voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon 
the altar which was made. And it came to pass at 
noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: 
for he. is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, 
or he is on a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, 
and must be awaked. And they cried aloud, and cut 
themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, 
till the blood gushed out upon them. And it came to 
pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied 
until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, 
that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor 
any that regarded. And Elijah said unto all the peo- 
ple, Come near unto me. And all the people came 
near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the 
Lord, that was broken down. And Elijah took twelve 
stones, according to the number of the tribes of the 
sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the Lord came, 
saying, Israel shall be thy name: And with the stones 
he built an altar in the name of the Lord: and he 
made a trench about the altar, as great as would con- 
tain two measures of seed. And he put the wood in 
order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid him on 
the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and 
pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood. And 



Mount CarmeL 



317 



he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the 
second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And 
they did it the third time. And the water ran round 
about the altar; and he filled the trench also with 
water. And it came to pass at the time of the offer- 
ing of the evening sacrifice that Elijah the prophet 




ELIJAH AND THE PROPHETS OF BAAL. 



came near, and said, Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, 
and'of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art 
God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that 
I have done all these things at thy word. Hear me, 
O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou 
art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their 



3'8 



The Pilgrims* 



heart back again. Then the fire of the Lord fell, and 
consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the 
stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was 
in the trench. And when all the people saw it, they 
fell on their faces: and they said, The Lord, he is the 
God; the Lord, he is the God. And Elijah said unto 
them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them 
escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought 
them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them 
there. And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat 
and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain. 
So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah 
went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast him- 
self down upon the earth, and put his face between 
his knees. And said to his servant, go up now, look 
toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and 
said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven 
times. And it came to pass at the seventh time, that 
he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the 
sea ? like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say unto 
Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that 
the rain stop thee not. And it came to pass in the 
mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds 
and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab 
rode, and went to Jezreel. And the hand of the Lord 
was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran 
before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel." (i Kings 18: 
17-46.) ^ 

The silence, save the roar of the sea in the distance, 
made these facts seem the more real; and for some 
time neither of the party spoke; and soon they silently 
moved down from the mountain top. 



Ruins of Cesarea. 



319 



From Accho are three different roads that lead 
to Jerusalem, viz.: by the coast, through Cesarea and 
Joppa, a second by Nazareth, and a third between 
these, over the plain of Esdraelon. Our travelers took 
the road through Cesarea for Joppa. Twenty miles 




PALM TREE AT THE FOOT OF>T. CARMEL. 



south of Mount Carmel, they reached the site of 
Cesarea, and found it utterly desolate; its ruins have 
long been a quarry, from which other towns in this 
part of Syria have been built. 

Rollin remarked: "I have read that in the time 
of Placitus, Cesarea was the head of Judea; that 



320 



The Pilgrims. 



Herocl the Great built the city, spending ten years at 
it. The utmost care and expenses were lavished upon 
the buildings. It was the official residence of the 
Herodian kings, and of Festus, Felix, and the other 
Roman procurators of Judea." 

" Yes," replied Uncle Joseph, "here, also, were the 
headquarters of the military forces of the province. 
Cesarea continued to be a city of some importance 
even in the time of the crusades." 

On approaching their lodgings, quite an amusing- 
incident occurred. The chief muleteer Ibrahim fell 
into a violent dispute with one of his subordinates. In 
true Arab style, there were more words than blows.. 
Louder and more bitter grew the curses and impreca- 
tions hurled from one to the other, until the climax 
was reached by the rebellious servant contemptuously 
shouting out to Ibrahim, amid the loud laughter of 
all the bystanders, "Aboo-Rachel ! " for Rachel was 
the name of Ibrahim's eldest daughter. This was 
more than even a "--true believer" could bear, and the 
result was a severe beating- administered to the 
saucy fellow by the enraged muleteer. 

Rollin could not understand why Ibrahim should be 
so greatly insulted at this. 

Uncle Joseph explained that it is a common custom 
among the Mohammedans to call a father by the 
name of his son. For example, a man whose son is 
named Yusef will be courteously entitled Aboo- Yusef y 
or, the father of Joseph. If, however, a man have 
no sons, but a daughter, he is never called by her 
name, but, instead, the name of some imaginary son 
is compassionately bestowed upon the unfortunate 



Arabs. 



321 



gentleman. If an orthodox old Mussulman have a 
beautiful, dark-eyed daughter Miriam, no matter 
how much he prize her, no matter if she is his only 
child ; you can scarcely put a greater insult upon him 
than to call him Aboo-Miriam. 

After our Pilgrims reached their lodging place, 
Uncle Joseph interested Rollin with the following 
description of birth customs in the Orient: — 

"The Arab children of a mission-school were play- 
ing tog-ether one morning, when the teacher over- 
heard one little girl speaking to another about the 
size of something she had seen the day before. 

It was very small, she said. 

How small was it ? asked her playmate. 

Oh, said the first girl, it was a little speck of a 
thing. 

But just how little was it? urged the second girl; 
wheu her companion replied — with a true oriental 
comparison, as beautiful as it is pathetic: . 

As little as was the joy of my father on the day I 
was born. 

"There is compressed into that brief expression a 
huge volume of mournful facts; facts which the Chris- 
tian world must meet and modifv, even though a 
knowledge of them may send a thrill of pious horror 
through every enlightened soul. 

" There is great rejoicing among all Orientals over 

the birth of a son, not only on account of the natural 

preference for a male posterity which is common to all 

lands, but for various other reasons. A son, if he 

survive, will perpetuate the name as well as the 

memory of his father. If it be in China, a son can 
21 



322 



The Pilgrims. 



alone acceptably worship the spirits of the departed 
ancestors, and furnish offerings for their comfortable 
sustenance in the ghostly realm of which they have 
become inhabitants. If it is in India, a sort of relig- 
ious despair takes possession of a man who is likely 
to have behind him no sons; for, in that case, the 
SJirad — a funeral ceremony considered essential to his 
happy transmigration and future welfare — must be 
performed by some other relative, and the poor spirit 
must remain in limbo a much longer time. 

"On the birth of a son, congratulations pour in 
upon the happy father; but when a female infant 
comes into the world, if the father does not actually 
hide himself from the people because of the ill tid- 
ines, he eoes out into the bazaar to receive the con- 
dolence and sympathy of his male friends to support 
him in his unwelcome trial, while the afflicted mother 
is obliged to endure ten extra days of purification. 

"The Orientals never cease to wonder at the fact 
that Christians, in their delight at the birth of a child, 
seem to make no distinction in favor of a son over a 
daughter; and numerous incidents are related where 
English or American residents in Eastern lands have 
actually received visits of condolence from their polite 
native acquaintances when the birth of a daughter has 
been announced, since strict courtesy would not per- 
mit such a domestic calamity to remain unnoticed in 
the neighborhood. 

"When girls are born and permitted to live, it is 
customary for the fathers almost entirely to ignore 
them. A father will spare no time or pains to insure 
the comfort of his son, watching over him with all a 



Oriental Customs. 



323 



woman's tenderness and patience when he is sick; 
nothing- is too. good for a son, the pride and glory 
of the household. On the contrary, although a father 
may speak kindly and pleasantly to a daughter, yet 
custom prevents his taking her up in his arms or 
kissing her, or instructing her, or showing her any 
of those attentions so dear to the heart of a child. 
In speaking of the number of his children, a true 
Oriental seldom takes the trouble to count in the 
daughters. 

"A wealthy Chinaman, in Shanghai, who was ex- 
hibiting his elegant residence, permitted a gentleman 
to see the female apartments, where, besides his three 
wives, were five or six little daughters. While the 
gentleman confined himself to the examination of the 
costly ornaments about the room, with frequent ex- 
pressions of surprise and wonder his host was com- 
placent; but when be began paying some attention to 
the little girls — who were really quite pretty — and 
were in an ecstasy of delighted curiosity at his pres- 
ence — he very emphatically gave the visitor to under- 
stand that he was fooling away his time noticing girls, 
and, with the air of a man who invites and expects 
sympathy, he wondered what he had done to offend 
the gods, that they had denied him a son, to perpetu- 
ate his memory, and worship at his grave, while they 
had fairly flooded his household with useless daugh- 
ters. 

" In Japan, although the desire for male children 
prevails, and sons are given a decided preference in 
all the affairs of life, still we cannot learn that female 
children are particularly unwelcome. Daughters are 



3 2 4 



The Pilgrims. 



treated with affectionate tenderness by fathers, and 
are allowed a degree of social liberty unknown on the 
continent of Asia. In China, however, the low es- 
timate in which females are held is immediately 
noticed, by travelers who hold an intercourse with in- 
telligent natives, and fully explains the debased con- 
dition of the sex throughout the empire. Europeans 
are frequently interrogated by the Chinese after this 
manner: 

How old are you? How many children have you? 
'One.' 

' Is it a boy, or a girl?' 
'A girl.' 

' What a pity! Would you not prefer a boy?' 

'No; I am thankful that Providence has sent me 
my sweet little daughter.' Whereupon the inter- 
locutor will invariably elevate his eyebrows with an 
incredulous shake of the head, and dismiss the subject 
by saying: 

' In my opinion, boys come from the gods, while 
girls are from the demons; boys are a blessing, but 
girls are a curse; and the quicker you get rid of them, 
the better!' 

"A girl from her very birth experiences the sinister 
influences of these prevailing ideas, and is constantly 
tormented with a sense of her inferiority and com- 
parative worthlessness. 

"The Mohammedans have a proverb: 'The thres- 
hold weeps forty days when a girl is born;' and I am 
told that, at least throughout this country of Syria, 
when a wedding takes place, the wish which custom 
requires each guest to express to the happy couple is: 



Oriental Customs. 



325 



* May your wedded life be long and peaceful, with 
plenty of sons and no daughters /' 

11 Mohammedans are very sorry when a girl is born; 
and the grief of the mother is most sincere and pitia- 
ble. She weeps as her female friends flock in to ex- 
press their sorrow, and they all weep together. And 
well they may, for most keenly can they appreciate 
the life-long disappointment and suffering which await 
the innocent babe. Sometimes the mother and grand- 
mother will refuse to kiss or to fondle the child for 
months after its birth, or to give the slightest expres- 
sion of regard for the little stranger; but this antipathy 
gradually wears away, natural affection asserts its 
supremacy, and the little girl comes to be kindly 
tolerated, if not heartily welcome. 

''When a boy is born he is greeted as a special 
blessing in answer to prayer, and there is great rejoic- 
ing. Presents, appropriate to his condition in life, are 
sent in by the relatives and particular friends of the 
family, and the happy father especially is the recipient 
of many hearfelt congratulations. Usually a feast, as 
costly as his circumstances will permit, is given by the 
father to his male friends, as an expression of his per- 
sonal gratification. But no rejoicings are indulged in 
when an unwelcome and despised girl is born, for 
:such an exhibition would be singularly inappropriate." 



326 



The Pilgrims. 



CHAPTER XVII. 



Sail for Rome — St. Peters — Pope Pius IX — The Vatican — Museum 
of Sculpture— Appian "Way — The Catacombs — Badio — Incidents 
— The Coliseum — Homeward bound. 

Having fully examined everything of interest about 
Joppa on their former visit, our travelers set sail from 
this port for Rome. The first stopping place was at 
the island of Crete; and from thence the vessel sailed 
to Melita, the ancient Malta, where Paul landed, and 
shook from his hand the viper. After leaving Melita, 
they went by Sicily, and landed at Naples, in Italy. 
From here they proceeded by land to Rome, which 
place they reached in safety after nearly eight days 
travel from Joppa. In Rome they prepared to remain 
at least one week, to see the sights before returning 
home. 

Of the three hundred churches in the city, besides 
its numerous cathedrals, they had time to see but few, 
but among this number, of course St. Peter's came in 
for a good share. When they reached the church, 
Uncle Joseph said, " Many minute descriptions have 
been given of this magnificent structure, but its di- 
mensions and splendor very far exceed the most 
elaborate description that can be given. It is as the 
poet has said, 



Rome. 



3^7 



' But thou, of temples old, or altars new, 
Standest alone — with nothing like to thee. 

What could be 
Of earthly structure in His honor piled 
Of sublimest aspect ? Majesty, 
Power, Glory, Strength, and Beauty, all are aisled 
In this eternal ark of worship." 

" St. Peter's stands on the site of the Circus of Nero, 
where many Christians were martyred, and where St, 
Peter is said to have been buried after his cruci- 
fixion. An oratory was founded here as early as a. d, 
90, and in a. d. 306 a basilica was begun by Constan- 
tine the Great. The present edifice was commenced 
by Julius II. in 1506. The expense of the work was 
so heavy — that of the main building being estimated 
at fifty millions — that Julius II. and Leo X. resorted 
to the sale of indulgence to raise money, and this led 
to the Reformation. And here let me say, dear Rol- 
lin, that, as we have wandered in the midst of pope- 
dom, even in its faded glory and enfeebled strength, 
I thought what faith and courage the brave Luther 
must have had, to stand out against Rome when in 
her pristine glory and power, and rebuke her in- 
iquities. 

" The front of this grand building is 400 feet long, 
and 148 feet wide. It is 600 feet in depth. There 
are five doors in the front opening into the vestibule, 
which is itself much longer and wider than a larre 
church. The diameter of the dome is 150 feet. On 
the roof of this cathedral is built quite a village of 
small houses, occupied by custodians and workmen, 
if we had but the time to ascend we would go up on 



Rome. 



3 2 9 



the roof, but for the present we must forego that 
pleasure." 

To describe minutely the interior of this structure, 
would, in itself, make a good-sized volume. It is a 
familiar fact that it does not at first seem so vast as it 
really is. The statues and ornaments which one na- 
turally takes as standards of measurement, are them- 
selves of unusual proportions — the angels in the bap- 
tistry are enormous giants; the doves colossal birds of 
prey. It is only by observing the living, moving 
figures, who look like large insects creeping over the 
marble floor, and are almost lost in the vastness of 
the encircling space, that one begins to get an idea 
of the immensity and grandeur of the edifice. Byron 
refers to this in his description of the church in Childe 
Harold:— 

" Enter : its grandeur overwhelms thee not ; 
And why ? It is not lessened ; bat thy mind, 
Experienced by the genius of the spot, 
Has grown colossal, and can only find 
A fit abode wherein appear enshrined 
Thy hopes of immortality." 

Gradually it expands until it fills the full measure 
of your anticipations, and far exceeds them. Its 
walls, railings, columns, corridors, arches, piers, and 
numberless altars, glitter with gold. The tombs and 
monuments of nearly all the popes and of many kings, 
are here. As you approach the bronze canopy and 
gaze up into the solemn dome of mosaics circling 
away four hundred feet into the heavens, you ex- 
claim, " It is enough." The high altar directly under 
the dome and over the supposed tomb of St. Peter, is 



33° 



The Pilgrims. 



too magnificent to attempt a description. Whilst 
standing at the altar, Uncle Joseph continued, " Dear 
Rollin, this alone is estimated to have cost nine millions 
of dollars. Service goes on perpetually both night 
and day, as you see it now. The moment it ceases 
in one part it immediateiy begins in another. Hun- 
dreds of people are constantly kneeling at the many 
altars while mass is in progress. That statue near 
this high altar, seated on a magnificent chair of fine 
marble, is St. Peter in silver and bronze. Hither all 
good papists resort daily in great numbers, even the 
small children, to kiss the saint's toe. To such an 
extent is this kissing done, that three-fourths of the 
statue's big toe has been kissed away." In the side 
wall of the edifice was pointed out to them the place,, 
where the remains of Pope Pius IX. had recently 
been taken, and interred outside the city walls 
for their final resting place. This led Rollin to 
remark, " I remember of reading, that, as his 
remains were conveyed through the streets of Rome,, 
large crowds of Italians followed, mocking and shout- 
ing words of derision, demanding that his body be 
thrown into the Tiber. This sacrilege greatly grieved 
the present pope, and to show his grief, he issued a 
mournful proclamation, and totally secluded himself 
from the outside world for the space of three months.'" 
" Yes," replied Uncle Joseph, " Liberal government 
has made the Pope very unhappy, and his residence 
uncertain. The ardent love which the Roman people 
once had for the head of their church, has so abated 
that even the silver coin bearing his image is utterly 
worthless, and will buy nothing. The moment they 



Rome. 



see it they cry, -Non papa!' (no pope). Straws tell 
which way the wind blows. 

"But we must now pass over into the Vatican. This 
is decidedly the most celebrated of all the papal palaces, 
and is composed of a mass of buildings on one of the 
seven hills of Rome, which cover a space of twelve 
hundred feet in length by one thousand feet in breadth, 
with over eleven thousand apartments. It owes its 
origin to the Bishop of Rome, who, in the early part 
of the sixth century, erected an humble residence on 
its site. Additions have been made by all the different 
popes from that time to the present. This is the 
Winter residence of the pope, and is contiguous to 
St. Peter's. It is, without doubt, the richest depository 
of antiquities, statues and pictures in the world. When 
it is known that there have been exhumed more than 
seventy thousand statues from the ruined temples and 
palaces of Rome, you can form some idea of the riches 
of the Vatican. The Vatican will ever be held in 
veneration by the student, the artist, and the scholar. 
Raphael and Michael Angelo are enthroned here, and 
their throne will be as durable as the love of beauty 
and genius in the hearts of their worshipers." 

On reaching the Vatican, our Pilgrims found it con- 
sisting of almost innumerable halls and galleries, with 
paintings and statuary of the highest order. In the 
Sixtine (Sistina) chapel they saw the celebrated paint- 
ings of Michael Angelo. Among the number his 
"Last Judgment" which occupied him seven years. 
In another part they looked, with transports of de- 
light, upon "The Transfiguration" the master-piece 
of Raphael. With more pity than delight, they- 



The Pilgrims. 



noticed the painting in 44 Commemoration of the pro- 
mulgation of the dogma of the Immaculate Concep- 
tion of the Virgin Mary, Pope Pius IX., 8th Decem- 
ber, 1854, by Podesti." 

The Museum of Sculpture was found to be equally 
-exquisite. There was so much to be seen that even 




ST. PETER'S CATHEDRAL. 



Rollin became wearied. One must wade among 
miles of stone men and women, many of them name- 
less, moveless, noiseless, senseless. Among the fam- 
ous antiques they saw the Laokoon, pronounced by 
many as exceeding all that the arts of paintings and 
sculpture have ever produced. Among so much merit 



Rome. 



333 



in painting and sculpture, there is, of course, some 
mere trash and rubbish. 

The next point of interest for our travelers was the 
Appian Way ( Via Appia), leading from Rome through 
what were known as the Pontine Marshes, to Capua. 
When Paul was taken to Italy, he undoubtedly en- 
tered Rome by this " Way." The Roman Christians 
we know, when they were apprised of his coming, 
journeyed to meet him at "Appii Forum and the Three 
Taverns." The former is only forty-three miles from 
Rome on this "Way," and the latter ten miles nearer, 
also on the great road ( Via Appia). They passed 
the tombs of Scipio, Cajus Cestius, and Maecenas. It 
is at the famous tomb of Cecilia Matella that the 
beauties of the Via Appia really begin. On every 
hand appear the remnants of departed glory. A short 
distance further on, and they emerged from the city 
walls, and enjoyed uninterrupted views over the ex- 
tended Latin plain, strewed with ruined castles and 
villages, and the long line of aqueducts, to the Sabine 
and Alban mountains, blue in the distance, and some 
of them hoary with the sunny snow. The tombs and 
monuments which line both sides of the Appian, once 
so glorious and rich in marble and precious stones, 
have been much dismantled and robbed of their 
beauty and wealth by the late Pope Pius IX., and 
the treasures converted into relics, and sold as reve- 
nues for the Romish church. 

Having gone out on the Appian as far as to the 
neighborhood of some of the catacombs, they stopped 
to visit some of these. The St. Calixtus being 
represented as the best specimen and the most in- 



Rome. 



teresting, they prepared to see them. With a lighted 
taper in hand, and a special guide, they descended a 
long, narrow flight of steps in the dark depths below, 
and were soon on their long way through the many 
subterranean galleries. The passage-ways are some- 
times regular for a considerable distance, but the mul- 
tiplication of cross-alleys and branches at last forms 
a labyrinth, into which it would be rash to venture 
without a guide. These galleries and corridors are 
of various lengths and heights, generally seven to 
eight feet high, and three to five feet wide. The 
tombs are excavations in the side walls, and remind 
one of the large shelvings in a store room. The roof 
is supported by that part of the tufa which is left 
between the passage-ways, and in these walls the 
tombs are excavated. The tombs that are in a good 
state of preservation are closed up, either with a slab 
of marble, or with a large thin brick. Inscriptions and 
emblems are found sculptured or painted on many 
of the slabs, and in some cases a small vase, sup- 
posed to have held blood, is attached to the end of 
the tomb. There are also large sepulchral chambers 
of various shapes — square, triangular, semi-circular, 
etc. These were doubtless family vaults, the walls 
of them being full of separate tombs. 

Rollin inquired of Uncle Joseph an explanation of 
the origin and use of these catacombs, as no ex- 
planation that he had seen gave him satisfaction. 

Uncle Joseph replied: "You are aware that the 
hills on which the city stands are of a soft stone that 
gets hard in the air, and the houses and temples had 
been built of this, which was dug from these great 



336 



The Pilgrims. 



caves and winding passages; and i.t was often a cus- 
tom to send men for a punishment to work among 
the digging slaves, who often lived, died, and were 
buried here. So many of these slaves were Chris- 
tians that these catacombs, as they were called, came 
to be the shelter of the Church. The ends of the 
galleries were fitted up with altars for the holy com- 
munion, lights hung from the roof, and the faithful 
worshiped here, out of reach of their enemies. If a 
party of soldiers pursued them, they could hide in the 
winding passages, where they knew their way, and 
here, when their lives in this world ended, they were 
buried in little niches in rows along the galleries, 
marked with their name and age, and some Christian 
token carved in the stone, such as the cross, the dove, 
the Good Shepherd, or the like — sometimes a palm, 
if the person had died a martyr, as we have seen in 
our explorations. 

"In these gloomy vaults hundreds of families formed 
a community by themselves, the common peril and 
privations binding them together with the strongest 
ties of interest and feeling. Their supply of food was 
somewhat precarious when the persecutions lasted 
more than two or three months at a time, and friends 
in the outer world often incurred the greatest peril in 
carrying sustenance to them by night. Water was 
supplied from wells dug for the purpose, while others 
were formed in the progress of excavation. The little 
Roman lamps, so many of which may be found in 
every art museum, were used to light these dark 
abodes, large ones being suspended in the chapels 
and galleries, which shed a soft twilight around, 



Rome. 



337 



rendering the gloom and shadows of the opening pas- 
sages still more weird and ghastly. When the veins 
of pozzolano were run far underground, they would 
occasionally open into a field or vineyard of the Cam- 
pagna, letting a bright ray of sunshine and warmer 
atmosphere into the cool darkness below. These air- 
holes, or places of ventilation, were called luminaria, 
and are frequently met with in riding over the Cam- 
pagna, overgrown, as they usually are, by vines and 
rank vegetation. Marriage ceremonies were per- 
formed, and funeral rites solemnized in chaoels cut 
out of solid rock, the largest of which, in the cemetery 
of St. Agnes, is capable of holding eighty persons. 
Here the true-hearted followers of Christ found a 
place of refuge from the rage of their enemies, and 
these narrow passages and vaulted crypts rang with 
hymns of lofty cheer from voices of those who ' wrote 
their names among the stars;' here entire families 
were born, lived and died. 

"The multitude and similarity of tunneled streets, 
crossine and recrossine at intervals, toeether with the 

o o o 

danger of galleries caving in, making return impos- 
sible, have rendered explorations exceedingly difficult 
and hazardous. Some of the passages are so low 
that one has to stoop in passing through them, but 
generally they are about three to six feet in width, 
and from five to twelve feet in height, arched, and 
sometimes plastered. The greater interest manifested 
in archaeological remains of late years has induced 
many discoveries among the catacombs, particularly 
those of St. Sebastian, through which church admit- 
tance is usually gained. A few years ago, Father 

22 



338 



The Pilgrims* 



Marehi, a learned Jesuit priest, was employed by the 
Romish church to make researches into the catacombs 




CATACOMBS OF ROME. 



of St. Aeries, St. Sebastian, and St. Calixtus, the 
three most frequently visited in Rome. Chapels and 
corridors which had been choked with dirt or blocked 



Rome. 



339 



up by directions of the early emperors, were cleaned, 
tombs opened, and inscriptions copied. Rows of cells, 
or graves in tiers of five or six, one above another, 
lined both sides of the galleries, which opened fre- 
quently into large crypts or chapels. In many of the 
cells slabs were removed, and vases, lamps, pictures, 
and articles of ancient pottery, were discovered. Here 
bones of thousands were lying, as they were deposited 
two thousand years ago, some in a state of preserva- 
tion, and incrusted with a mineral deposit from the 
drippings of the rocks above; in other graves the 
shadowy outline of a skeleton form was barely dis- 
cernible in the handful of dust lying in its tufa niche. 
The openings into these niches were filled with plas- 
ter bearing the name and inscription. Occasionally, 
when a tomb was opened, the faint odor of incense 
was observable, as if rich gums and spices had been 
used in preparing the remains for the grave. The 
•catacombs became not only the burial-place of mar- 
tyrs, but in some cases the scene of their tortures 
and death. St. Stephen and several other bishops of 
Rome, were pursued by their relentless persecutors 
into the very heart of these caverns, and poured out 
their blood upon the stony floor of the Sebastian cat- 
acombs. 

" Tiers upon tiers, story upon story, these sad, silent 
streets, lined with skeletons of martyrs and perse- 
cuted Christians, extend for miles under the imperial 
■city and surrounding country. The catacombs contain 
nearly seven million graves, a number so vast that 
the imagination almost fails to grasp it. Under the 
swelling mounds which rise everywhere over the 



340 



The Pilgrims 



Campagna are the galleries and foundations of ancient 
villas and tombs. A few years ago, excavations were 
made on the Via Latina, when the roofs of two ancient- 
tombs were discovered. The sarcophagi stood in the 
centre, and on the ceiling were figures in basso relievo, 
sketched when the plaster was wet, with colors as 
fresh and unfaded as when first laid on. Landscapes, 
birds, flowers and musical instruments were painted 
upon the walls, and on the ceiling of one was a 
representation of Jove wielding his thunderbolts. The 
tiles or slabs of cement on the graves of the catacombs 
retain the impression of the trowel, and in some a 
little phial or vase which once contained the blood of 
a Christian martyr was inserted in the mortar, and 
sealed up in the grave, together with the instruments 
of his torture. Impressions of coins, medals and in- 
scriptions, marked with the point of the trowel, may 
also be seen in the cement, while many of the crypts 
and chapels, particularly those of St. Agnes, were 
ornamented with pillars of rare marbles and precious 
mosaics, bearing various curious and grotesque de- 
signs. 

" In this catacomb, in which restorations commenced 
in the third century, is the tomb of the martyred 
St. Agnes; also the rotunda erected by Constantine 
about the year 316. The bodies of St. Peter and 
St. Paul were supposed to be concealed in these cata- 
combs. The body of St. Cecilia lies in the Callisto 
catacomb, which contains paintings more numerous 
and more important than those of St. Agnes. 

"As time wore on the graves of the early Christians 
were looked upon as shrines, and where regarded 



Rome. 



341 



with the holiest veneration by medieval Christians. 
The catacombs became the Mecca of thousands of pil- 
grims, who flocked to them from all parts of Christen- 
dom. Popes and prelates, queens and emperors, were 
for centuries interred in these vaults, in close vicinity 
to the tombs of slaves, criminals, and Christian mar- 
tyrs. Princes and nobles, and warriors in distant 
Palestine commanded in their wills that their bodies 
or their hearts should be carried thither for sepulture. 
The tombs belonging to illustrious families were 
adorned with marbles, paintings, and rich decorations, 
many of which have supplied our museums with 
curiosities. Churches and oratories were erected over 
the entrance to the principal cemeteries, with flights 
of stone stairs descending to the vaults below. St. 
Peter's was built over the cemetery of the Vatican, 
St. Sebastian and San Lorenza over others, and the 
Basilica of St. Agnes over the catacomb containing 
the tomb of that martyress. Saxon kings and queens, 
and emperors from beyond the alps, were laid in these 
consecrated places; and the celebrated Countess Ma- 
tilda, the friend of the great Hildebrand, was buried 
in one of these ancient chapels. 

''About three hundred years ago, Basio, a most per- 
severing and enthusiastic archaeologist, spent nearly 
thirty years in exploring this city of the dead. He 
discovered many tombs bearing curious allegorical in- 
scriptions, one of the most common being the fish, 
the Greek word for that symbol containing the initials 
of jfesus Christ, the Son of God, our Saviour. Other 
favorite symbols are the anchor, the emblem of hope; 
the dove with an olive branch in its mouth, signifying 



342 



The Pilgrims. 



the peaceful departure of the Christian soul; the 
back of St. Peter; bread, symbol of the Eucharist; 
the tortoise and the dormouse, symbolical of death 
followed by an awakening; Moses striking the rock,, 
signifying baptism; death by fire or boiling oil repres- 
ents the three children in the furnace; the palm-leaf, 
too, was supposed to be an emblem of martyrdom. 




TOMBS IN THE CATACOMBS. 

Another symbol was the Greek monogram for Christ, 
X and P crossed in various ways. 

"On holiday or festival occasions the catacombs are 
visited by crowds of students, travelers, and citizens 
of Rome. Guides conduct them down the stone 
stairways of the vaults of St. Sebastian, and usher 



Rome. 



343 



them into this abode of mystery and darkness. — 
Lamps are hung at intervals along the corridors to a 
certain distance, and flowers and evergreens line the 
walls, making the stifling, suffocating air of these 
gloomy vaults sweet with the balmy odors of the 
Campagna. Wreaths and flowers decorate the altars 
where Christians once knelt, and where their voices 
had been raised in song, making crypt and vaulted 
corridor ring with the glad sound of praise and tri- 
umph. 

" Many thrilling incidents are related of explorations 
into the catacombs. About twenty years ago, fifteen 
young men connected with one of the colleges in 
Rome, accompanied by a teacher, descended into 
these sombre galleries, taking with them tapers to 
light their way. Hours passed, but they did not re- 
turn; the alarm was given, and an unavailing search 
made for them, but not one ever came back to the 
outer world to tell the fate of the rest. They prob- 
ably became bewildered in the darkness, and having 
wandered hopelessly from one passage to another, 
were at length compelled by exhaustion and starva- 
tion to lie down and die amid the shapeless dust and 
hideous, grinning skeletons of these silent tombs. 

" In the last century a young artist attempted to ex- 
plore this " holy cradle of our Christian race." With 
a torch in his hand and a thread for a guide, he wan- 
dered on through these arched caves, crowded with 
martyr relics, pausing now and then to copy an in- 
scription, or to sketch a monument. Becoming ab- 
sorbed in study, his thread slipped unknowingly from 
his grasp, and for some time he continued his walk 



344 



The Pilgrims. 



unconscious of his loss. Upon perceiving the fact, he 
tried to retrace his steps, but could not distinguish one 
passage from another; to add to the horror of his 
situation, his taper began to grow dim, and finally 
went out, its last beam having rested upon the 
whitened bones of a skeleton suspended from a niche 
in the wall. All was darkness and awful silence. He 
dared not move for fear of falling into some pit or 
ancient well; in despair he shouted and screamed for 
help, but his voice only awoke the hollow echoes of 
the vaulted chambers like a knell, and chilled him 
with supernatural dread. Alone among the dead, 
surrounded by moldering dust and spectral forms, 
phantoms seemed to throng his burning brain, and 
chase each other through the black crypts and endless 
galleries. He thought that he heard a sound, but the 
appalling stillness was unbroken. Thrilling with awe 
and almost crazy with terror, he dashed himself fran- 
tically upon the stony passage. As he fell his hand 
touched something upon the cold earth; he could 
scarcely breathe, his brain was in a whirl — the lost 
thread, the clew to the bright, warm, beautiful world 
above was in his hand. With trembling limbs, and 
.clinging to his precious guide, he felt his way out on 
his hands and knees, and finally found himself back 
again upon the green meadows of the Campagna, with 
the bright stars beaming softly above him as they wel- 
comed him to the sweet, kindly scenes and sounds of 
human life." 

Rollin replied, " I, too, remember of reading a 
similar story of a young man, who resolved to ex- 
plore these catacombs. He provided himself with a 



Rome. 



345 



light, and in order that he might not lose his way, he 
took a ball of string, and fastening one end of it at 
the entrance of the dark passage, he carried that ball 
with him that he might guide his way out by it. Being 
thus furnished, he went in, and walked cautiously 
alono-, o-azino- in silence on the different names and 
memorials inscribed on the tombs in this dark city 
of the dead. He spent some hours in this manner, 
and, dark and dismal as the place was, his way was 
comparatively pleasant, because he had a guide, the 
string, with him. But when he was about turning to 
go back his light went out, and in the alarm into 
which this threw him, he dropped his string, which 
was all he had to depend on to lead him back to the 
outside world of light and life. He stooped down at 
once to pick up his guiding-string, but he could not 
find it. He got down on his knees, and felt carefully 
around in every direction for that very precious 
thread, on which hung all his hope on life and deliver- 
ance, but in vain. He turned and groped and groped 
.and turned, till weary with the effort, which seemed 
to no purpose, he began to despair. He felt that he 
was buried alive. He thought of his home, of his 
friends, and of that bright and beautiful world with- 
out, and wept bitter tears of sorrow and regret over 
his folly in entering this gloomy abode. But he 
knew that weeping would do him no good, and he 
resolved to make a desperate effort to escape, before 
giving himself up to die. 

"Again he began in utter darkness to grope his 
way back. But he had no guide, and ah! he felt 
how dreadfully unpleasant his way was made simply 



346 The Pilgrims. 

for the want of a guide. He walked on in darkness, 
till compelled to stop and rest. Again he walked, 
and a^ain he rested. He continued his efforts for 
hours, that seemed like ages to him, but it was for life 
he was strueeline, and so he toiled on. and on, and 
on, till at last his energies were exhausted. He felt 
that it was of no use; he thought he must die, and 
just as he was sinking in utter despair to the earth, 
he thought die saw a faint glimmer of light. This 
revived his sinking heart. He struofefled on a little 
farther, and, as he- turned a corner of the way — 
oh! joy of joys to him — there was the broad light 
of day. A merciful Providence had directed his steps 
in the dark, and brought him out in safety." 

On their return to the city, they visited Mammer- 
tine Prison, which consists of two subterranean dun- 
geons one below the other. An old monk with a 
lighted lamp conducted them down a long flight of 
stone steps to the upper prison, where they entered 
in a cold, dark room, built up on all sides and over- 
head with enormous stones. In ancient times the 
only connection between the upper and the lower 
dungeons was by a circular hole just large enough to 
admit a human body. Through this opening prisoners 
were lowered to the dungeon below. In modern 
times a stairway has been cut around through the 
rock from the upper to the still more horrible lower 
prison. No light of day has ever penetrated that 
dark, deep, damp, dismal dungeon. But the chief 
interest of the Mammertine lies in the tradition that 
St. Peter and St. Paul were confined there just before 
their martyrdom. Without believing or disbelieving- 



Rome. 



347 



the story, our pilgrims still got some idea of a Roman 
prison in St. Paul's da)'. 

In descending the stairs, the monk paused before 
a rude indentation in the stone wall, which they could 
imaeine looked like the side of a man's head. There 
the guide waxed eloquent, and said: ''This is the im- 
pression of St. Peter's head! When the jailers were 
taking the apostle to the prison below, they rudely 
pushed him against the wall, leaving this indentation 
in the solid rock!" In the lower dungeon the monk 
showed them a spring, and again becoming eloquent 
he said: "Here Peter preached to two of his jailers 
until they believed, and asked to be baptized. Then 
the apostle touched the floor and this fountain burst 
from the rock; thus, by a miracle, water was furnished 
for baptism." Uncle Joseph whispered to Rollin: 
"Alas for the old monks story, Plutarch tells us that 
Jugurtha drank of the same fountain when he was in 
the prison, and that was a century before St. Peter- 
was born." 

The next object of interest was the Coliseum, which 
was considered the most stupendous building ever 
reared. It was built during the time of Vespasian 
and his son Titus, some sixty years after Christ, and 
was the theater of many appalling scenes, the most 
prominent of which was the martyrdom of the early 
Christians. 

It was a building of an elliptical form (oval), six 
hundred and twelve feet long - , and five hundred and 
fifteen feet wide. It is about one-third of a mile 
around it. It was built entirely of stone, the outside 
being incrusted with marble, and decorated with 



Rome. 



349 



statues. It was composed of four stories, each of 
which was formed by eighty arches, supported by as 
many marble columns, each of the arches of the lower 
story served as an entrance to the building, and in 
every fourth one there was a staircase. The entire 
height was about one hundred and sixty feet. 

Within the building in the center, is the arena, so- 
called because it was usually covered with fine sand. 
This is also elliptical in shape, two hundred and fifty- 
feet long, and one hundred and sixty feet wide. It 
was here that the contests took place. Around 
the arena were some eighty rows of marble seats, 
rising one behind and above the other. In the 
arcade beneath the seats were the dens for the wild 
animals, and the cells in which the gladiators were 
kept. 

The completion of the Coliseum was celebrated by 
gladiatorial combats continuing one hundred days. It 
is said that during this time five thousand animals 
were killed for the amusement of the multitude, and 
nobody knows how many men. In the arena were 
given all sorts of games, shows, exhibitions, and con- 
tests. Arrangements were even made by which it. 
could be flooded with water. Boats were floated in 
it, and naval battles were fought. 

Primitive Christianity is associated, in a peculiar 
and impressive manner, with Vespasian's great build- 
ing, for the Flavian Amphitheater was often the scene 
of early martyrdoms, and is now become their great 
standing memorial. 

A large amount of untrustworthy legendary matter 
is no doubt mixed up with narratives of these suffer- 



350 



The Pilgrims. 



ings; but there is no difficulty in picturing to ourselves 
what really took place. 

In the words of Doctor Arnold, "No doubt many 
of the particular stories will bear no critical examina- 
tion. It is likely enough, too, that Gibbon has truly 
accused the general statements of exaggeration. But 
this is a thankless labor, such as Lingard and others 
have undertaken with respect to the St. Bartholomew 
massacre. Divide the sum-total of reported martyrs 
by twenty — by fifty if you will — but after all you 
have a number of persons, of all ages and sexes, suf- 
fering cruel torments and death for conscience' sake 
and for Christ's, and by their sufferings manifestly, 
with God's blessing, insuring the triumph of God's 
Gospel." 

First in the series of Christians who were given to 
wild beasts in the amphitheatre was Ignatius, Bishop 
of Antioch. 

On his arrival in Rome, the games for which he was 
destined were nearly ended, and he was hurried to the 
Coliseum. 

"The beasts quietly dispatched him, and so raven- 
ously, that only the harder and more rugged bones 
were left." 

Such scenes soon became common. From the 
time when the Emperor Decius put notices on the 
walls that magistrates sparing the Christians would 
be punished, persecution grew more general and sys- 
tematic, and at intervals raged violently. 

"The Christians to the lions!" became a common 
cry in times of panic and excitement, and hundreds 



The Coliseum. 351 

of both sexes and all ages were relentlessly hurried 
to the fatal arena. 

What a touching story it is, from the first serious 
persecution under Nero down to that of Diocletian, 
which raged with fury for ten years, and the details 
of which make many of our school-books far more 
exciting than any fiction. 

In the Belgian collection of pictures at the Interna- 
tional Exhibition was one painted by E. Slingeneyer, 
representing a young Christian about to be "butchered 
to make a Roman holiday." The painting soon be- 
came famous, and its beautiful story has been told in 
graphic lines by some one: 

" The gladiator's show was nearly o'er. 

Applause for them was mingled with the shout, 
'Enough of this ; now for the Nubian lion ! 

The lion ! the lion ! Bring the Christian out ! ' 

"The Christian's cell was opened. Sunshine sweet 
Poured on his tranquil form — for God had given 

A blessed sleep, e'en at that dreadful hour, 
And maybe a more blessed dream of heaven. 

" The light and noise awaked him — the truth 

Rushed on his mind, but did not change his brow; 

Why should he dread the conflict and the death ? 
There was but one short step to glory now ! 

u Shout, taunt and execration rent the air, 
Then the wild roaring of his hungry foe ; 

His Saviour's words burst from the martyr's lips- 
1 Father, forgive them, for they do not know.' 

" Who does not envy him, so calmly brave ? 

Who envies them, the gayest of the throng ? 
Whilst they go back to impious revelry, 

In heaven the martyr joins the angel's song.' " 



352 



The Pilgrims. 



During the middle ages, the Coliseum was used as 
a fortress. In the fourteenth century its destruction 
began. The stone was carried away to be used in 
building- other houses. At least three magnificent 
palaces were largely built of material taken from the 
Coliseum. In the eighteenth century means were 
taken to preserve it, and large buttresses were after- 
wards built to prevent the walls from falling. 

Only about one-third of the structure remains, and 
yet an architect has estimated that the stone still in 
the ruins is worth two million five hundred thousand 
dollars. If this be true, the material alone used in 
the construction of this vast amphitheater must have 
cost nearly eight million dollars. A moderate esti- 
mate of its entire cost may be placed at twenty million 
dollars. The games, contests and displays in the 
Coliseum were under the special direction and patron- 
age of the emperor, and vast sums of money were 
spent upon them. They have been excelled, perhaps, 
either in magnificence or cruelty, by no exhibition in 
any country or any age. But when we think of 
the hundreds of human beings w T ho were here 
compelled to sacrifice their lives in order to divert 
the minds of a blood-thirsty people, we cannot but 
rejoice that the whole is now a moldering mass of 
ruins. 

The Coliseum in its glory may be taken as a sym- 
bol of the greatness of Rome. In its ruins, it is 
emblematic of her departed grandeur, and of the fact 
that the cruel rites which were celebrated within its 
walls have given place to the more benign and 
humane influence of Christianity. 



Homeward. 



353 



Having seen enough of Rome and her wonders, 
our Pilgrims hastened on through Switzerland, France, 
and England, and set sail for home. After a pleasant 
voyage of nearly ten days, the American shore was 
seen. An experience of nearly a year of travel in 
foreign countries, led Rollin, more than ever, to ap- 
preciate the advantages and privileges of his own 
dear American home, under the protection of the 
greatest Republic the world has ever known. 



4 



